Liverpool Salon Presents – Beyond the Hype

Beyond the Hype: The Inside Story of Science’s Biggest Media Controversies

Fiona Fox’s book Beyond the Hype takes us behind the scenes of some of the most toxic science stories of the last two decades, including: Climategate, involving the theft of ten years of emails from a Climate researcher, used to claim that climate change was a hoax, the shaming of the Nobel prize winner Tim Hunt, the media frenzy over the dangers of ‘Frankenstein food’, and the bewildering story of the harassment of scientists researching Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ ME.

The book finishes with Fox’s reflections on the pandemic, from the media profiles of Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance, to the role of political journalists and the government’s mantra of ‘following the science’.

Chief Executive of the Science Media Centre since 2001, Fiona Fox believes in the vital importance of good science communication and warns of the damage to public understanding when scientists are scared to speak out on the defining issues of our times.

Beyond the Hype is chaired by Pauline Hadaway, co-founder of the Liverpool Salon and is part of the Salon’s series of public conversations on themes of utopia and dystopia.

Tickets: £10 (early bird £7.50 until 15 October)