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A Corporate War Against a Scientist, and How He Fought Back

Posted by timothy on from the tools-at-his-disposal dept.

AthanasiusKircher writes "Environmental and health concerns about atrazine — one of the most commonly used herbicides in the U.S. — have been voiced for years, leading to an EU ban and multiple investigations by the EPA. Tyrone Hayes, a Berkeley professor who has spearheaded research on the topic, began to display signs of apparent paranoia over a decade ago. He noticed strangers following him to conferences around the world, taking notes and asking questions aimed to make him look foolish. He worried that someone was reading his email, and attacks against his reputation seemed to be everywhere; search engines even displayed ad hits like 'Tyrone Hayes Not Credible' when his name was searched for. But he wasn't paranoid: documents released after a lawsuit from Midwestern towns against Syngenta, the manufacturer of atrazine, showed a coordinated smear campaign. Syngenta's public relations team had a list of ways to defend its product, topped by 'discredit Hayes.' Its internal list of methods: 'have his work audited by 3rd party,' 'ask journals to retract,' 'set trap to entice him to sue,' 'investigate funding,' 'investigate wife,' etc. A recent New Yorker article chronicles this war against Hayes, but also his decision to go on the offensive and strike back. He took on the role of activist against atrazine, giving over 50 public talks on the subject each year, and even taunting Syngenta with profanity-laced emails, often delivered in a rapping 'gangsta' style. The story brings up important questions for science and its public persona: How do scientists fight a PR war against corporations with unlimited pockets? How far should they go?"

8 of 253 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Sounds like he was enjoying himself! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Wow. You read all the articles and links quickly. Amazing how quickly you cam to know how he responded or what was asked.

  2. How do we fight back against Beta? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    We boycott Slashdot.

    Slashcott: February 10-February 17.

    1. Re:How do we fight back against Beta? by AmiMoJo · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      The Slashdot boycott starts in an hour in the UK. Seems like posts about it are being modded off-topic now, which is a shame because the beta site is very much still alive and very much still awful. The classic site is still slated to go away at some point, and the basic design of the beta site isn't going to change.

      It's not like we haven't been saying that the beta site is a disaster for months. The goal is to keep the classic site around forever. We are not saying it shouldn't change or be improved, just that the beta isn't an acceptable alternative and that our concerns have not been addressed.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  3. Nerd war goes on by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    After visiting this site regularly, nearly daily, since 1998, here is the last thing I will see before joining the Slashcott in less than ten minutes. I want this post to serve as testimony of what this site has become, and a warning of what it will become in the next weeks and months.

    Fuck you, DICE.

    Your user account has been banned from Slashdot

    Due to questionable activity from this user account, it has been temporarily disabled. Actions that would cause this ban are posting comments designed to intentionally break comment rendering for other users, or running some sort of script or program that loaded an unacceptable number of pages in a short time frame.

    If you feel that this is unwarranted, feel free to include your UID (XXXXX) in the subject of an email, and we will examine why there is a ban. If you fail to include the UID (again, in the subject!), then your message will be deleted and ignored. I mean come on, we're good, we're not psychic. Send your email to banned@slashdot.org
    .

    FUCK BETA

  4. Let's do this! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Fuck Beta. Boycott Slashdot!

  5. No sex with Beta for the next week by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Fuck Beta. Sorry, I'm boycotting sex with Beta this week. Maybe next week.

  6. The beta is as horrifying as people are saying. by rcharbon · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    My first look at the beta, cause I'm always logged in. It's as horrifying as people are saying. So much air, so little content.

  7. Corporate war against Nerds and how they fought by oRCAD+Monkey · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    3000000 nerds had favourite community forum.

    Sometimes argue but most time very happy.

    Forum website bought by Dice.

    Change forum into website for Pointy Haired Bosses, called Beta Slashdot.

    Dice think " Make more money this way"

    Now Nerds very sad. sad sad sad

    Please Please Mr. Dice, give back forum to Nerds.

    Then Nerds happy again.

    3000000 Nerds that are unhappy with you is not good.