 | |
| Author | Naomi Oreskes, Erik M. Conway |
|---|---|
| Subject | Scientists—Professional Ethics Science news—Moral and ethical aspects |
| Published | June 3, 2010 Bloomsbury Press |
| Pages | 355 pp. |
| ISBN | 978-1-59691-610-4 |
| OCLC | 461631066 |
| 174.95 | |
| LC Class | Q147 .O74 2010 |
Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming is a 2010 non-fiction book by American historians of science Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway. It identifies parallels between the global warming controversy and earlier controversies over tobacco smoking, acid rain, DDT, and the hole in the ozone layer. Oreskes and Conway write that in each case "keeping the controversy alive" by spreading doubt and confusion after a scientific consensus had been reached was the basic strategy of those opposing action.[1] In particular, they show that Fred Seitz, Fred Singer, and a few other contrarian scientists joined forces with conservative think tanks and private corporations to challenge the scientific consensus on many contemporary issues.[2]
Some of the book's subjects have been critical of the book, but most reviewers received it favorably. It was made into a film, Merchants of Doubt, directed by Robert Kenner, released in 2014.[3]
- ^ Steketee, Mike (November 20, 2010). "Some sceptics make it a habit to be wrong". The Australian.
- ^ Oreskes, Naomi; Conway, Erik M. (2010). Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming. Bloomsbury Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-1-59691-610-4. merchantsofdoubt.org Archived December 7, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Merchants of Doubt". Sony Pictures Classics. Retrieved March 8, 2015.