Jevin West and Carl Bergstrom are two scientists studying how the publishing industry pushes misinformation, and how to make it better.
In the age of fake news, disinformation campaigns, and misinformation run rampant across social media, it can be difficult to know where to place your trust. This is especially true when it comes to science.
While there is a special place in purgatory waiting for scientific liars and cheats, we should all cheer those who stand up for the integrity of science and help call out those who corrupt the scientific record.
This is something that Jevin West and Carl Bergstrom, associate professor of data science and professor of biology respectively at the University of Washington (UW), respectively, know first hand through their work at UW’s DataLab studying the spread and creation of biased or fabricated science. Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen the spread of misinformation far and wide, including that COVID-19 vaccines will impact fertility or that the illness itself is no more deadly than the flu.