David Kirby (journalist)
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David Kirby is a journalist based in Brooklyn, New York, and was formerly a regular contributor to the New York Times since 1998, he is author of the 2005 book Evidence of Harm - Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic: A Medical Controversy.
Kirby has written for many national magazines, including Glamour, Redbook, Self, and Mademoiselle. From 1986 to 1990, Kirby was a foreign correspondent for UPI, and Newsday (among others) in Latin America, covering wars in El Salvador and Nicaragua, and he covered politics, corruption and natural disasters in Mexico. It was during this time-frame that he also served as a reporter for OutWeek.
From 1990 to 1993, Kirby was director of public information at the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR), worked for New York City Council President Carol Bellamy, and was a senior staff adviser to David Dinkins' successful 1989 run for mayor of New York City.
In 1998, Kirby wrote a cover story for the Advocate, Does coming out matter?: a new Harris poll suggests that knowing people who are gay makes little difference in whether one supports gay rights; from 1998 to 2001, he wrote many articles for the Advocate, including one on the courage of young gay and lesbian scouts and service members Lessons in Courage.
From 2000 to 2004, Kirby contributed several articles on travel to the New York Times including "Rainbow Beach Towels on Mexican Sand", an article on the gay tourism industry in Puerto Vallarta. He has also written on topics other than travel and leisure, including When the Car Beside You Is an XXX Theater on a new phenomenon, known as "dirty driving", the playing pornography on DVD screens inside vehicles while they drive through traffic. The article expressed concern for what children have been exposed to by these "dirty drivers".
Since May, 2005, Kirby has been a contributing blogger at The Huffington Post.
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[edit] Evidence of Harm
Evidence of Harm explores the controversies surrounding thimerosal containing vaccines (TCVs), and whether TCVs have contributed to the apparent increase of autism, ADHD, speech delay and other childhood disorders in the United States. In the book, Kirby tells the personal stories of parents of children who have autism, founders of the advocacy group SafeMinds, including Sallie Bernard, Lyn Redwood, Mark Blaxill, Albert Enayati, Heidi Roger, and Liz Birt.
In November 2002, Kirby learned of 'the thimerosal theory' while investigating autism treatments for an article he was writing. At first, he thought the theory was a little far-fetched, but a week later he had second thoughts when the United States House of Representatives passed the Homeland Security Act, which included a rider immunizing Eli Lilly from liability for any damage caused by TCVs.
"Many of the public health officials who discount the thimerosal theory were unwilling to be interviewed for this book (or prohibited from speaking by superiors)," Kirby later wrote. "Readers are invited to reach their own conclusions on the evidence." Nevertheless, Kirby also acknowledges "(E)ach side accuses the other of being irrational, overzealous, blind to evidence they find inconvenient, and subject to professional, financial, or emotional conflicts of interest that cloud their judgment." Ultimately, Kirby finds the evidence leveled against thimerosal inconclusive but suggestive, and calls urgently for further research.
[edit] British Medical Journal review
In a May 2005 book review published in the British Medical Journal, Kirby was portrayed as biased and as siding with delusional conspiracy theorists by Michael Fitzpatrick, MD: "In his determination to provide an account that is sympathetic to the parents, Kirby enters into the grip of the same delusion and ends up in the same angry and paranoid universe into which campaigners have descended, alleging phone taps and other forms of surveillance as they struggle against sinister conspiracies between health authorities and drug companies."
On May 23, 2005, Kirby defended himself on the British Medical Journal's online Rapid Response board. A May 14, 2005, post to the same thread (regarding Fitzpatrick's book review) was sent by someone claiming to be Kirby; Kirby says that the he was not responsible for this post.
On the British Medical Journal Rapid Response board, others offer their comments for and against the evidence in "Evidence of Harm", including two autistic people in the latter group.
[edit] Strange bedfellows
A strange twist of fate has garnered unexpected support for Evidence of Harm from conservatives in the US. A story reported on the Corporate Crime Reporter said, "Kirby, a former assistant to New York City Democratic Party officials, including former City Council President Carol Bellamy and former Mayor David Dinkins, says that “the right wing press has been all over this, and the left wing press won’t touch it.” NPR and the Public Broadcasting System get a lot of money from drug companies, and they need whatever money they can get, so they are not going to offend any advertiser - ever. Whereas the major commercial networks have a little more leeway and play. They take more risks. The conservative press is anti-government, whereas the liberal press is so pro-public health - it is like the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) can do no wrong, doctors can do no wrong. It's like the liberal Democratic Party establishment created this public health system that we are so proud of, and we are not going to attack it."
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- EvidenceOfHarm.com - Official Evidence of Harm web site
- Evidenceofharm.com - Official biographical sketch
- HuffingtonPost.com - David Kirby's blog at Huffington Post
- Meet the Press Full transcript for August 7, 2005. Includes David Kirby and Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg.
[edit] Evidence of Harm book and reviews
- AutismToday.com - '1 In Every 166 Children In The United States Has Autism: What's Causing This Epidemic? Is it possible that the FDA has made yet another grave oversight?' (Evidence of Harm book review)
- BMJJournals.com - Evidence of Harm, book review, Michael Fitzpatrick, MD, British Medical Journal (May 14, 2005)
- BMJJournals.com - 'Rapid Responses' in the British Medical Journal to Michael Fitzpatrick's book review
- Co-Brass.com - 'Evidence of Harm: What are the critics saying?'
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