UK Campaign Launched: ‘Ask for the Scientific Evidence’
The UK non-profit organization Sense About Science has launched an ‘Ask for Evidence’ campaign in response to growing concerns about the number of unsubstantiated, distorted and misleading claims being made in the public domain, particularly the internet.
The campaign aims to encourage people to insist on evidence when concerned about the risks or benefits being claimed on a website, product, advert, advice, publication or policy announcement.
The campaign says consumers do not need a science degree to ask about the evidence.
The ‘Ask for Evidence’ campaign website says “you can ask penetrating questions about evidence, whatever your experience”.
The website also lists questions that anyone can ask companies which publicize questionable claims including: “What kind of testing has been done on this?” and “What is the status of evidence for the claim? Has the research been peer-reviewed and published?”
The ‘Ask For Evidence’ campaign aims to empower consumers and make more groups and companies accountable for their claims. The logic of the campaign is that the more people ask, the more a company will expect to be asked so they’ll make evidence available and think more deeply about how they present claims in the future.
