Ben Goldacre

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).

Dr Ben Goldacre is a British journalist and doctor who is the author of the Bad Science column in the The Guardian newspaper.[1] He describes himself as "a junior doctor in London and a shameless geek."[2]

Contents

[edit] Academic career

He studied medicine at Magdalen College, Oxford where he obtained a first class degree in his preclinical studies in 1995.[2] While at Oxford he also edited the student magazine Isis.[3] Before going on to clinical medicine at University College London, he was a visiting researcher in cognitive neurosciences at the University of Milan, working on fMRI brain scans of language and executive function. According to his biography, he also has a masters degree in philosophy from King's College, London.[2]

[edit] Bad Science column

Goldacre writes a weekly column, Bad Science, in the Saturday edition of The Guardian newspaper's daily science page,[1] with expanded versions of the columns with reader comments on his website badscience.net.[4] Devoted to satirical criticism of scientific inaccuracy, health scares, pseudoscience and quackery, it focuses especially on examples from the mass media, consumer product marketing and complementary and alternative medicine in Britain.[5]

He has been a particular critic of the claims of television nutritionist Gillian McKeith,[6] anti-immunisation campaigners (such as followers of Andrew Wakefield), Brain Gym[7], bogus positive MRSA swab stories in tabloids,[8] and the makers of the product Penta Water[9]. While investigating McKeith's membership of the American Association of Nutritional Consultants, Goldacre purchased a "certified professional membership" on behalf of his late cat, Henrietta, from the same institution for $60.[10] In February 2007, McKeith agreed to stop using the title "Dr" in her advertising following a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority by a reader of Goldacre's columns. [11]

[edit] Awards

Goldacre has won several awards for his journalism, including:

  • Association of British Science Writers award for Best Feature 2003[12] for his article "Never mind the facts"[13]
  • Association of British Science Writers award for Best Feature 2005[14] for his article "Don't dumb me down"[5]
  • Freelance of 2006 at the Medical Journalism Awards[15]
  • the inaugural Statistical Journalism Award of the Royal Statistical Society[16] for his article "When the facts get in the way of a story"[17]
  • the Healthwatch Award for "significant steps in improving the public's understanding of health issues"[18]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Bad Science (column). The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  2. ^ a b c "Ben Goldacre", PFD Group.
  3. ^ Bad Science (about Ben Goldacre). Retrieved on 2007-02-16.
  4. ^ badscience.net. Ben Goldacre. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  5. ^ a b Don't dumb me down. The Guardian (2005-09-08). Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  6. ^ Brought to book: the poo lady's PhD. The Guardian (2007-02-07). Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  7. ^ Exercise the brain without this transparent nonsense. The Guardian (2006-03-25). Retrieved on 2006-02-10.
  8. ^ How many microbiologists does it take to change a tabloid story?. The Guardian (2005-11-19). Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  9. ^ Troubled water. The Guardian (2005-02-10). Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  10. ^ Dr Gillian McKeith (PhD) continued. The Guardian (2004-09-30). Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  11. ^ TV dietician to stop using title Dr in adverts. The Guardian (2007-02-12). Retrieved on 2007-02-12.
  12. ^ Science Writers Awards - Winners 2003. Syngenta ABSW Science Writers' Awards. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  13. ^ Never mind the facts. The Guardian (2003-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  14. ^ ABSW Science Writers' Awards - Winners 2005. Syngenta ABSW Science Writers' Awards. Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  15. ^ MJA News October/November 2006 (PDF 3.5 Mb). Medical Journalists Association (2006). Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  16. ^ 2007 Award for statistical excellence in journalism. Royal Statistical Society. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.
  17. ^ When the facts get in the way of a story. The Guardian (2006-04-01). Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  18. ^ Highlights from Newsletter no 62, July 2006 - Bad Science writer to be awarded at 18th AGM. HealthWatch. Retrieved on 2007-02-10.

[edit] Further information

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../b/e/n/Ben_Goldacre_0ac3.html"