WHEN the Advancement for Sound Science Coalition was formed in 1993, it seemed like a respectable organisation. Chaired by a former New Mexico governor and with respected scientists as members, its stated goal was to encourage policy makers to use good science when setting laws. But the group was a front. As was later revealed, it was set up by the tobacco giant Philip Morris as part of a public relations campaign to discredit studies linking second-hand tobacco smoke to disease.
Another seemingly common-sense campaign, formed under the banner of “good epidemiological practices”, sought to establish quality standards for epidemiological…
