“Science Denial Is Not a Mistake. It’s a Lie” -- Lee McIntyre | Amanpour and Company

In his new book, "How to Talk to a Science Denier," Lee McIntyre examines how the anti-vaccine movement, climate-denial, the flat earth movement and other conspiracies have gained a dangerous foothold in society. He speaks with Michel Martin about what we can do as conspiracy theories gain ground.

Originally aired on September 21, 2021.

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Amanpour and Company features wide-ranging, in-depth conversations with global thought leaders and cultural influencers on the issues and trends impacting the world each day, from politics, business and technology to arts, science and sports. Christiane Amanpour leads the conversation on global and domestic news from London with contributions by prominent journalists Walter Isaacson, Michel Martin, Alicia Menendez and Hari Sreenivasan from the Tisch WNET Studios at Lincoln Center in New York City.

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[kathymarcove]

I love Michel Martin interviews!!! She asks the hard questions and the questions I want to ask. Thank you Michel... You are the best!!!

[FreddieVee]

I saw a CNN video in which a young couple went into a restaurant in Texas. The waitress told them they must take off their masks because the owner doesn't believe in masks or vaccines. They told the waitress that they have a sick child at home (cystic fibroses) and needed to take extra precautions. The waitress wasn't persuaded by that argument. When did we change from, "You can't take away my freedom and force me to wear a mask" to "I can take away your freedom and not allow you to wear a mask"? What's next? "You can't take away my freedom and force me to be Vaccinated", But "I can take away your freedom and not allow you to be Vaccinated".

[robertwysocki]

I'd say science denial started in this country as a response to (and rejection of) Darwin's theory of evolution when it first came out. Remember the Scopes Trial of 1925 in Tennessee.

[poigmhahon]

Yes...gullible defines our culture...modern medical science is a gift.

[biologicalexuberance]

One cannot protect people from themselves. My strategy is to just stay away from them as much as possible.

[transamgal]

If the earth 🌎 was flat the cats 🐈 would have knocked everything off the edge lolsies

[snowytyler]

I honestly feel like the words “fake news” undermined so much of what was once a common understanding of reality. At least it felt like we had that to me. It became so easy for uncomfortable truths to be dismissed as “fake news” and therefore not addressed.

[KaritKtana]

Thank you for drawing the distinction between DOUBT and MISTRUST! that was really eye-opening. As well as between proof and evidence. Really important conversation!

[vsquare]

Great interview and I agree with McIntyre. If we attack a person’s ideas, we’re attaching them, but then my question becomes, if they won’t /don’t want to hear factual information, and they don’t want to hear why you believe differently while you’re being as empathetic as you can, how do you get them to open up to the truth. I’ve tried so many approaches and rarely engage anymore because these deniers don’t want to hear it, they did their heels in deeper. It’s frustrating and very sad, because they’re not just hurting themselves but the earth, all of us, and especially our children’s future. This is truly alarming.

[virginiamoss]

I've been made to realize the origin of science distrust. I am old enough to have lived through the tobacco war as it were. Of course nicotine-addicted people who were told by doctors on television that smoking was good for their health do not want to hear from scientists and other doctors that smoking is harmful. If they embraced that, they would have to quit! They had structured a whole identity of coolness and success, in with the in crowd, around smoking. Cognitive dissonance ensued. Note that for a long time that 20% he referenced and the 20% of the population that smoked (now around 15% finally) is telling. That's when it started and how it started.

[TheTravelTurtles]

Great guest! Prof McIntyre’s Post-Truth book is required reading for understanding this era, an era that we may not see the end of for a generation. Easier to break society than it is to rebuild, unfortunately, and our leaders can’t even figure out how to shut down Facebook. Please interview more tech realists like him, for example, Jaron Lanier, Tristan Harris, Cal Newport, Doug Rushkoff…

[kristinamelnichenko]

It’s hard to stay connected with people who are anti-science and won’t “talk politics” so there’s not even a chance- I guess that’s just part of dividing us ☹️☹️☹️☹️

[chuckkottke]

I went to a flat Earth convention, but I kept falling off the edge...🌏🌎🌍

[someguy]

Critical thinking skills need to be taught in school. I was fortunate enough to have been taught this way, and have benefited from it. This was back in the 70's here in the USA.

[Eged]

Truth is spoken here. Love, and TRUST PBS.

[wonderwhy]

Generally speaking Americans like to voice their opinions, even on subjects that they barely have any knowledge about. Self importance make people stand their ground and refuse to change their mind, no matter how irrational.

[nancyfahey]

I got my mind changed. I got the first shot. I wasn't going to go back for the second but I don't want to get sick. I'm not a science denier. I just had a bad reaction on my first flu shot. This shot is totally different. Open your mind and think.

[YosemiteOnMyMind]

“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge’.”
— Isaac Asimov

[movingpicutres]

Absolutely correct information in this segment. Thank you.

[gpan]

The problem is that not everyone is as knowledgeable on a subject or knows how to use that knowledge to persuade. You could be caught in a situation where you're arguing over which "facts" to believe.