The gentle art of blog killing

October 14th, 2007

Some of you may remember that last year Sense About Science took a break from fuelling internet gossip to strike out at errant homeopaths. Armed with a secret camera and an intrepid intern, they filmed therapists registered with the Society of Homeopaths prescribing remedies to prevent malaria, in direct contravention of the Society’s charter. This explicitly prohibits:

…making claims (whether explicit or implied; orally or in writing) implying cure of any named disease.

Homeopathy seems harmless enough when curing Home Counties housewives of miscellaneous aches and pains, but claiming it can do what billions of dollars of earnest medical research has so far failed at is a dangerous stance. However, this is not an article on whether homeopathy works.

Andy Lewis, blogging from his fortified compound at Quackometer.net, penned “The Gentle Art of Homeopathic Killing”, an article fiercely critical of the Society of Homeopaths because of their apparent reluctance to take action against errant members (who, remember, were filmed breaking the Society’s rules). As Lewis saw it, if the Society were a regulatory body – as they claim to be – members who flout their rules should be disciplined or dismissed. If this didn’t happen, the Society only existed to add a veneer of authenticity to an already murky profession.

The Society of Homeopath’s response was to threaten Lewis’s hosting company, Netcetera, with legal action unless the offending material was taken down. After some discussion, Lewis reluctantly removed the entry (in order to keep the rest of his site online) until this unfortunate business could be resolved. At no time has the Society contacted Lewis directly to explain what about his post was defamatory, or to respond to his criticisms.

As any fool knows, trying to censor material on the internet is an exercise doomed to fail. At the time of writing, one week after Lewis removed his criticisms, the article has been reposted verbatim on over a dozen sites, and the number continues to grow. This is known as the Streisand Effect – efforts to censor material inevitably result in it becoming more widespread. You may remember a similar attempt by Ann Walker to silence David Colquhoun, which resulted in the Festival of Ann Walker, as bloggers the world over took turns to dissect her claims.

However, the most important aspect of this case is that it does not centre on whether homeopathy works. This is not about dubious alternative treatments. It’s very telling that while the Society of Homeopaths tolerates endless attacks on the science of homeopathy, it panics when the Society’s ability to act as a regulatory body is brought into question. This is because the Society knows that even if homeopathy is debunked as nonsense (which it has been), people will still want it – the offer of cheap, personalised medicine is too seductive to reject. Challenging its credibility as an organisation is far more dangerous, because the Society draws its strength not from a belief in homeopathy, but from a trust in the Society. A trust that looks to be irrevocably damaged by their heavy-handed tactics toward Andy Lewis.

Entry Filed under: General

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