Create ‘rebuttal’ unit to counteract fake news, scientists told

"scientists and scientific associations should “anticipate campaigns of misinformation and disinformation” that will inevitably follow the release of findings threatening to partisans on either end of the political spectrum" - This is reasonable, but I see no need to restrict it those at either end of the political spectrum (itself a dubious concept) - why not include partisans of the middle way? "one of the nation’s [the USA presumably] two principal political parties has become deliberately and self-consciously anti-science” - Which one, dare one ask?

Most politicians, wherever they sit on the political spectrum, are only interested in scientific evidence that supports their own opinions or can be use to promote their own self interest... it is the general public that we need to ensure are provided with the accurate information that they need to understand what is going on - and to cast informed votes at the ballot box. Many UK professional bodies already have public information enshrined in their remit, but there is scope to do more - we must all speak up on our areas of expertise.

Nobody gets published for being a 'public scholar'. Nobody gets promoted for not being published. Institutional metrics don't get improved by its academics not publishing. Nobody gets confirmed or rehired for not improving institutional metrics. The shift in emphasis in academic careers to research-as-measured-by-journal-publication encourages a shift away from engaging in public debate and engagement. It's far safer for those with kids to raise and mortgages to pay to focus their efforts elsewhere.