More Masks and Censorship by FaceBook

What should we do when there is debate or opposing views on a scientific topic?

From the beginning of Trust the Evidence, we have been following the comings and goings around the evidence of the effects of face masks. 

One of us is the lead author of the relevant Cochrane review of Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses, so we were also able to provide some background to the history and evolution of the review. So, yes, it is not new, the 2023 version is the fifth update, and it is not a mask review; it is a Cochrane review on all physical interventions (our emphasis).

The review's findings limped along for the first 15 years, hardly noticed. Yet, the pandemic brought censorship, disinformation, retrofitting of evidence to bolster policy (or decisions made in double quick time) and the political use of masks as a visible symbol that governments are seen to be doing something. 

Censorship and personal attacks have been directed at us on various fronts, orchestrated by politicians and, in one case, involved blacklisting one of …