Unreasonable demands for proof of causation and the manufacture of doubt

Description

An event organised by Hidden Epidemics and Epidemiological Obfuscation research network.

Speaker

• Daniel S Goldberg  (University of Colorado Anschutz)

Abstract

The primary claim of this talk is that regulated industries have historically used unreasonable demands for proof of causation as a significant tool in the Manufacture of Doubt. Industrial success in manufacturing doubt matters because it has had and continues to have devastating consequences for public and population health. In defending these claims, the talk begins by situating the manufacture of doubt as an historical script that sophisticated actors deploy for the purpose of advancing their political and economic goals. The analysis moves on to consider some of the many tools regulated industries have used to manufacture doubt and identifies among such tools “unreasonable demands for proof of causation.” The talk gives several examples of such demands, explains why they are unreasonable, and explores some of the consequences for the population health concern at issue. The talk concludes by considering the extent to which actors have issued such “unreasonable demands” as a tool in manufacturing doubt during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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