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Sheldon Rampton
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Trust Us, We're Experts: How Industry Manipulates Science and gambles with Your Future Hardcover – December 28, 2000

by Sheldon Rampton (Author), John Stauber (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 88 ratings
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The authors of Toxic Sludge Is Good for You! explores the widespread, devious, and underhanded ways in which industry deceives the public through the use of bogus experts, manufactured facts, and manipulated data. 17,500 first printing.
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  1. Print length
    360 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Tarcher
  4. Publication date
    December 28, 2000
  5. Reading age
    18 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    5.78 x 1.27 x 8.5 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    9781585420599
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1585420599
  9. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Fearless investigative journalists Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber (Toxic Sludge Is Good for You! and Mad Cow U.S.A.) are back with a gripping exposé of the public relations industry and the scientists who back their business-funded, anti-consumer-safety agendas. There are two kinds of "experts" in question--the PR spin doctors behind the scenes and the "independent" experts paraded before the public, scientists who have been hand-selected, cultivated, and paid handsomely to promote the views of corporations involved in controversial actions. Lively writing on controversial topics such as dioxin, bovine growth hormone, and genetically modified food makes this a real page-turner, shocking in its portrayal of the real and potential dangers in each of these technological innovations and of the "media pseudo-environment" created to obfuscate the risks. By financing and publicizing views that support the goals of corporate sponsors, PR campaigns have, over the course of the century, managed to suppress the dangers of lead poisoning for decades, silence the scientist who discovered that rats fed on genetically modified corn had significant organ abnormalities, squelch television and newspaper stories about the risks of bovine growth hormone, and place enough confusion and doubt in the public's mind about global warming to suppress any mobilization for action.

Rampton and Stauber introduce the movers and shakers of the PR industry, from the "risk communicators" (whose job is to downplay all risks) and "outrage managers" (with their four strategies--deflect, defer, dismiss, or defeat) to those who specialize in "public policy intelligence" (spying on opponents). Evidently, these elaborate PR campaigns are created for our own good. According to public relations philosophers, the public reacts emotionally to topics related to health and safety and is incapable of holding rational discourse. Needless to say, Rampton and Stauber find these views rather antidemocratic and intend to pull back the curtain to reveal the real wizard in Oz. This is one wake-up call that's hard to resist. --Lesley Reed

From Publishers Weekly

Recent surveys show that "national experts" are the third most trusted type of public figure (after Supreme Court justices and schoolteachers). Hard-hitting investigative journalists Rampton and Stauber (Toxic Sludge Is Good for You!) ask whether that trust is misplaced. They assert that, with highly technical issues like environmental pollution and bioengineered foodstuffs, "people are encouraged to suspend their own judgment and abandon responsibility to the experts." The authors examine the opinions of many so-called experts to show how their opinions are often marred by conflicts of interest. Peering behind the curtain of decision making, they catch more than a few with blood money on their hands. From spin doctors with dubious credentials to think tanks that do everything but think and scientists who work backwards to engineer desired experimental results, Rampton and Stauber present an astonishing compendium of alleged abuses of the public's willingness to believe. Particularly sobering is their summary of the historical use of "experts" by the tobacco and mining industries, which, they reveal, have suppressed and manipulated information in order to slow industrial reform. Their allegation that industry flaks may be purposely clouding the current debates swirling around "junk science" and global warming issues should provoke readers to reexamine these matters. Rampton and Stauber's impassioned call for skepticism goes beyond rhetoricAthey also offer practical guidelines for separating propaganda from useful information. Agent, Tom Grady. (Jan. 2) Forecast: The authors' gloves-off approach, which is effectively signaled by the pointed and irreverent cartoon-style jacket, will appeal to fans of Bill Moyers, Jeremy Rifkin and Barbara Ehrenreich (who all blurbed the book).
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 158542059X
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tarcher; First Edition (December 28, 2000)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 360 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781585420599
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1585420599
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.2 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.78 x 1.27 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 88 ratings

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  1. Sheldon Rampton

    Sheldon Rampton

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
88 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Guy Denutte
5.0 out of 5 stars "Science is becoming our enemy instead of our friend" (Dr. Robert Becker)
Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2009
Verified Purchase
Robert Proctor understood the situation perfectly well when he stated : "Science has a face, a house, and a price; it is important to ask who is doing science, in what institutional context, and at what cost."

In 1960 we had 63 scientific reports on asbestosis. The 11 studies founded by the asbestos industry found no link whatsoever between asbestos and lung cancer. The other 52 independently financed studies did observe a clear link.

Nowadays, well into the 21st century, genetically modified food, regarded as "safe" by the FDA, are everywhere in our supermarkets. However, the only study we know of, from Dr. Arpad Pusztai, discovered that Monsanto-potatoes produced deformations when fed to rats. Since this study was financed by Monsanto, he got fired.

Science has been privatised and it is with nostalgia that we recall the situation in 1960, when industry was only able to finance 17 % of all studies, and could not obscure the truth. Nowadays, big corporations finance nearly all scientific investigation, obliging scientists to remain silent if the study doesn't produce the desired outcome, thereby undermining the spirit of neutrality and objectivity that should prevail in science. Who doesn't play by those rules is fired, like occurred not only to Dr. Pusztai, but also to Dr. Nancy Olivieri, Dr. David Kern, Dr. Robert Becker, etc. It's a pity that the public doesn't know, let even support those heroes, those honest persons, putting the interest of the general public to know the truth before private profits. They went as far as putting our interests before their own careers and salaries. Dr. Becker summarizes the current state of scientific investigation in the following words : "... science is becoming our enemy instead of our friend." He was nominated twice for the Nobel prize, but in Stockholm they are possibly not very interested in such a strong statement during the official ceremony.

The corruption of science began when government agencies began to rely on "experts" from the industry to "evaluate" drugs and foods. It continued in the same bad direction when university researchers were being paid by industry to produce papers with "honoraria of $ 1.000 to $ 1.500 to edit the drafts and lend their names to the final work", as the authors say.

Read this book to understand how science got so corrupted.
25 people found this helpful
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Abacus
5.0 out of 5 stars These guys are far better than Michael Moore
Reviewed in the United States on May 28, 2003
Verified Purchase
It is a bit sad that in our society the loudest mouth gets the most publicity. This is where Michael Moore comes in. If you want to get the real scoop from two fellows that are pretty apolitical and tell it to you how it is, get this book.
You won't trust any thing you read anymore the way you use to. Whenever you read about a new medical study, you will seek who funded it. You will make direct links between the source of funding and the conclusion of the given scientificy study. You may loose a bit of sleep, but this type of collective critical thinking is one of the most powerful tool of a well developed democracy. On this count, one could easily argue that ours is not a well developed one, as overall our critical thinking skills are not what they should be on a communal level. This book will help.
26 people found this helpful
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Gary M. Heir, DMD
3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2014
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Good material but a difficult read.
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bob lewis
5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opener
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2021
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Enabled me to have a new and clearer definition of "expert". To be candid, I was unaware of the extent of the PR industry and their infiltration of all aspects of our live, even to the Military.

My awakening!
One person found this helpful
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N. Weaver
5.0 out of 5 stars Nothing is as it appears
Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2020
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This book will open your eyes to just how much of what you read, hear and see on television and the Internet is nothing more than propaganda, or counter-propaganda. It will also surprise you to learn how long this has been the case.
9 people found this helpful
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Gracie Girl
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book.
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2022
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Though info is a few years old, it is still revelent. A bit technical.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars I needed this book asap and it magically appeared!
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2021
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Great book, great price and I will seek out that seller again.
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Phil Bello
5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opening
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2018
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This book is a definitive source for understanding the tools of corruption and social disregard across business and government to the detriment of the masses and the edification of the oligarchy.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Andres Vargas R
4.0 out of 5 stars Muy buen trabajo de investigación
Reviewed in Mexico on March 2, 2022
Verified Purchase
Visión del manejo mercado salud y que no siempre la prioridad es la “salud” dijo también es influido por los temas de utilidades
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bec
5.0 out of 5 stars This book is for everyone. Totally right for the ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2016
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This book is for everyone. Totally right for the time it was written - still highly relevant. Gives you the history that will empower any activist against the manipulation in scientific progression.
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Meyer Gérard
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 15, 2015
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indispensable
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S Wood
5.0 out of 5 stars The Whores Of Deception
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 26, 2010
"Trust Us, Were Experts" is one in that pair of intrepid reporters (John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton) remarkable series of books on the Public Relations industry and the manipulations and deceptions that go on in so-called Democracies. In this outing they don their white coats, enter the lab and firmly fix the genus Impartialis Expertis under the microscope. The results are not edifying.

The idea of scientists being full of integrity, "scientific", rigorous and impartial in the search for the truth that is out there is shown to be problematic, especially when Corporate interests become involved. The authors cite a number of examples (Tobacco, Asbestos, Organochlorines, Pesticides, Lead, etc) where people with scientific credentials have pimped their expertise to Corporations to either derail regulation, cast doubt on scientific evidence, or mislead the public in ways that have often been grotesquely harmful to society. One of the examples that I was completely unaware of was the "Hawks Nest" tunnelling project. Anything from several hundred to two thousand black workers (like Iraq no-one was counting) died of the then well known condition Silicosis while drilling a two mile tunnel through quartz rock. Stauber and Rampton detail the efforts of Corporate interests and their "experts" to derail regulations designed to prevent silicosis, their failure to provide safety equipment to the workers or even to inform them of the known risks (a company expert is quoted as saying "We expected them to die but not that quick"), and the lengths the Corporation involved and their experts went to fight of demands by the surviving workers and their families for compensation.

Besides specific case studies such as the Hawks Nest example above, the book contains a short history of public relations as it developed with particular regard to its relationships with scientists and experts; examples of the efforts of whistleblowers and other activists in their fights for justice; the relationship between politics, think tanks and Corporations (including their industry bodies), and their public relations and lobbying efforts. It also offers some insight into the world of Academia, the relationship between Corporate cash and that world, including the dubieties of Corporate sponsored institutions and research, and insight into how the peer review system and academic journals are supposed to function, and how they often function. At the end of the book there is an excellent list of further reading.

Though the focus is mostly on examples from the United States, the book has a relevance for any country where Public Relations and Corporations function, and is an enlightening read on how these interests seek to undermine the democratic process and further their financial interests at the expense of the public. Well recommended reading - it can also be picked up second fairly cheap!
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HIGGY
1.0 out of 5 stars Unhappy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 15, 2015
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Shocking Quality of item, did not come in a reasonable manner. DISAPPOINTED
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