In 2015 a long standing Australian anti-vaccination activist and lobbyist, Judith Wilyman, was awarded a PhD by the University of Wollongong. Titled A Critical Analysis of The Australian Government’s Rationale for its Vaccination Policy, the work attracted exceptional criticism. I’d like to consider the veracity of certain arguments raised in defence of Wilyman’s work, noting they have arisen from one source and are themselves extensive. [Jump to Conspiracy Theory Attribution].
Antithesis
From across the globe and from multiple sources, criticism flowed readily for Wilyman’s publication. For this author, there was one thing other than the content that also rankled. The fact that it was a collection of biased references arranged to attack the integrity of one of Australia’s most effective public health initiatives. Quite striking, for a work that emerged from an academic institution, is the absence of any original research conducted by the author. As the author uses the term “thesis” we had best examine this. The Oxford dictionary offers two distinctions, with the following describing “a doctoral thesis”:
a long essay or dissertation involving personal research, written by a candidate for a university degree
This may of course seem petty unless you’ve taken time to examine this work. Nonetheless for the sake of clarity I too shall yield and refer to this diversion from genuine analysis of Australian vaccination policy, as a thesis. It is clear however, that there is no research, methodology, study, data collection or justified hypothesis. There is only a literature review and a biased one at that. Australian emergency physician Kristin Boyle describes the work as, “the inevitable product of someone with an ideology based agenda”. Genuine literature reviews that seek to examine varying or different arguments, are valuable items of research. They collate and examine related works, and in judging the strengths or weaknesses of each, offer a contention, or indeed a novel conclusion. This didn’t happen in the Wilyman literature review. Still, Judith Wilyman falsely poses herself as “an expert witness” in a family court case, a “specialist in government vaccination policies” (federal politics), and has significantly elevated her importance to the fields of vaccinology and public health.
The reality is Wilyman barely scraped in. One of her two examiners suggested the thesis was unworthy of PhD status and better suited to a Master’s degree. They observed concerns about a lack of engagement with existing literature and “the lack of an appropriate theoretical framework”. Wilyman they argued, had conducted no original research nor contributed to the knowledge of the subject. This conflict was resolved by the rare event of appointing a third examiner. Australian Skeptics Inc. report (archived):
That third examiner, also unnamed, judged that, while the thesis as assessed showed Wilyman conducted original research, it did not make a significant contribution to knowledge of the subject, had no indication of a broad understanding of the discipline within which the work was conducted, and that it was not suitable for publication.
They recommended that the thesis be resubmitted, and gave “extensive and detailed comments on areas that need to be improved”, sharing the same concerns as the earlier critical examiner.
This revised version was consulted by only one examiner; the third individual who had requested the significant changes. The original “earlier critical examiner” was not asked for an opinion. The examiner who had accepted the original, doubly-rejected thesis, was considered a certainty for the improved version. Thus, a year later than she planned, Wilyman had her PhD.
In the excellent article, PhD thesis opposing immunisation: Failure of academic rigour with real-world consequences (Vaccine 37; p. 1542), Wiley et al postulate as to how this oversight possibly came to be:
The quality of the writing and presentation of the thesis is such that many of its arguments could seem plausible to an examiner without specific content knowledge, despite sound academic credentials. Our combined expertise (vaccinology, epidemiology, the history and practise of immunisation policy development globally and in Australia, social science) and as PhD examiners, both gives us detailed knowledge of the sources cited by the thesis, and allows us to identify key deficiencies […] A critical analysis should consider the merits and faults of an issue and be conducted in a way that is not designed to find only evidence for the writer’s pre-determined conclusions. […] This thesis does not include methods for assessing the literature, does not discuss aspects of identified studies which may contradict one another, or attempt to establish the quality of relevant studies. Rather, the references used are highly selective, only citing a small number of the available epidemiological studies and clinical trial reports, all of which are interpreted to support conclusions which appear pre-determined.
The Supervisor
A News GP summary of the above paper in Vaccine is available here. Let’s examine the first sentence in the above quote. Firstly, does it help us understand how such a deliberate failure to include material supporting Australia’s vaccination policy was not addressed by Wilyman’s supervisor? Secondly, is it likely such a biased collection of arguments was missed because examiners, and particularly the supervisor, lacked “specific content knowledge”? Sure, Wilyman studied within the School of Humanities and Social Inquiry. Her supervisor, Professor Brian Martin completed his PhD in Theoretical Physics and later became a Professor of Social Sciences, at the University of Wollongong. But not being qualified in vaccinology, related fields or policy development does not render senior academics incapable of accessing evidence or seeking consultation. More so, Wilyman’s published acknowledgement of her supervisor is unambiguous;
I would also like to thank Professor Brian Martin, my primary supervisor at the University of Wollongong, for his unwavering support and encouragement. His weekly phone calls kept me focused and there were many robust discussions that helped me to overcome the significant opposition to this project. I thank him for his patience and dedication to my research.
It’s important to acknowledge that the role of Professor Brian Martin (left) in Wilyman’s thesis was not just one of “unwavering support” for her many unsupported claims, but one in which his own later accounts afford academic freedom more importance than academic integrity. I shall endeavour to be as fair as possible in referencing claims Brian Martin has made in defence of the Wilyman thesis. I will seriously consider the notion of Conspiracy Theory Attribution (CTA) and the suggested failure of critics to analyse the thesis and citations presented.
Time is close for the 2025 Surf Coast Skepticamp (SCSC) held at Aireys Inlet this coming 15 March. This is Australia’s longest running Skepticamp and is lining up speakers for the eleventh time.
This year the event is being held at Aireys Inlet Community Hall from 10.30am to 4.30pm. The journey from Melbourne is around 1 hour 45 minutes by combustion engine, battery, or hybrid powered vehicles. Time absolutely slides by as the stunning vista of Great Ocean Road scenery cruises by. The cost, of course, is free. But you should still help with arrangements by popping into Eventbrite here and picking up a ticket. Full details are available there also.
Topics covered in the past include: UFOs (Saunders & Dunning beamed live from Bend, Oregon!), Anti-vaxxers after COVID, Going Solar, Fake Martial Arts, Catching Academic Cheats, Climate change in Australia: fact vs. fiction, Crowdfunding Scams, Shayna Jack, sports supplements and regulators, The Weeping Woman and Other Tales: The Belief in the Supernatural in Latin America, Quiz: Just how smart are skeptics?, and much more.
This year we will be headed by published author and researcher Karen Bijkersma who will alert us to on-line subterfuge with “Reading Between the Lies: applied rhetoric in the digital dating era“. Then, regular attender Richard Saunders (Lifetime Skeptics Achievement Award winner) of The Skeptic Zone will drop in for a chat about the current skeptical investigations in Australia (on-line from Sydney). Nathan Eggins (Thornett Award winner) will perform for us (on-line from Brisbane) and maybe ask us to contribute duck quacks to the lyrics of his famous song, Paul Gallagher (Skeptic of the Year) – speaks about the “turbo cancer” conspiracy theory; Terry Kelly (past Presidents of the Vic Skeptics) – “The Dodgiest Skepticamp Stuff I have Seen”; Karl “Rocket Man” Hemphill ‘will analyse and dissect possibly the worst Olympic performance ever with “Raygun – a case study for skeptics”; and Don Hyatt (Convenor of SCSC and the National Convention 2012) will consider the obscure topic “Was Captain Smith a Flash in the Pan?“ and somehow link it to Black Swans.
Come along and enjoy the day. Or, why not bring your interests to Skepticamp and present a 20 minute-ish talk? If that sounds like you, just drop an email with your details and chosen topic to sgofvic@gmail.com. Skeptical thoughts on public health, alternatives to medicine, communicating with the dead, UFO/UAP reports, or the many bizarre claims reaching social media; any and all are welcome.
We break for lunch and visit the various eateries around Aireys Inlet then finish the evening with a wind down and meal at Aireys pub.
January has ushered in some interesting developments for skeptics in Australia as dodgy practices seemingly jostle for attention. Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has published welcome updates and warnings, a QLD influencer sank to a new low, our most insistent anti-vaccine fantasist copped yet another fact-check from the Australian Associated Press (AAP) and 14 members of a faith healing cult have been found guilty of manslaughter.
Black Salve
Black Salve has been a long term problem for the TGA as it remains a dangerously reckless alternative cancer treatment, linked to the unwarranted belief it offers a cure. A company and its director were convicted in 2022 for advertising alternatives to medicine not on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods. A significant seizure of black salve also took place in late 2023. On 6 January this year, the therapeutic watchdog published information that following an investigation in conjunction with the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, an individual faced 12 charges for alleged criminal offences under the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989.
The alleged offences relate to the advertising and supply of black salve, bloodroot capsules and other unapproved therapeutic goods. It is alleged that the individual made claims about the products’ ability to treat serious health conditions, including anxiety and cancer.
The defendant faces a maximum penalty of 12 months’ imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $222,000 for each charge.
Sanguinarine, a primary corrosive agent in black salve, is listed as a Schedule 10 substance in the Poisons Standard. These are described as substances “so dangerous to health that they are prohibited from sale, supply and use in Australia”. Whilst the TGA has not named the individual, a certain Belinda Gae Harris (pictured) who operates Tickety Boo Herbal, had prior to Christmas, revealed via video on Rumble that she had been charged in the exact manner later outlined by the TGA.
Harris remains adamant she is being charged for “helping people” and wrote, “I have been persecuted for being a healer for many lifetimes”. In her video Harris announced she has spent her life finding solutions for the damage [the TGA] have done with mRNA vaccines and “allopathic treatments”. On the topic of mRNA vaccination, Harris wrote last month on social media she used black salve and, “sucked the jab out of people straight after that poison injection”. She continued on her Rumble channel:
I’m just going to keep doing it, because I’m helping people and I’m saving lives. My angels managed to keep this at bay until 2025… I need to have a stack of evidence saying these are all the people whose lives I have saved… Oh my God, Oh my God. It just never ends with this world. This matrix is bullshit. Bullshit lies. They’re allowed to administer carcinogenic chemotherapy to people and fry the fuck out of them with their radiation. But I’m not allowed to do a simple herbal remedy that I have tested over and over again… I’ll see you in court government – who always seem to be loving watching me. I bet you’ve got the hots for me. You probably do, just like the trolls… You can’t shut me up. If you put me in jail I’ll just be educating everybody around me. Okay. Namaste. Loving you. Ben Abou.
Harris was scheduled to appear before Deniliquin local court on 4 January for Commonwealth and Police criminal mentions. One awaits updates on the matter, which aren’t presently coming from the Tickety Boo Facebook page.
Melanotan tanning products
On 24 January the TGA published a warning about the risks of using tanning products containing melanotan. Illegally sold and advertised online they consist of nasal sprays and injectable and indigestible tanning products. Unapproved for sale in Australia, they may contain toxic or counterfeit ingredients. Melanotans are synthetic peptides that increase melanin production in the skin. The risk of serious side effects mean melanotans should only be used under medical supervision. However they are being illegally promoted as safe, including by social media influencers. Vulnerable young Australians struggling with body image issues are at significant risk. The TGA write:
While the most common side effects include headache, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and facial redness, the most concerning one is the risk of serious skin cancers. With melanotan-II, there have been reports of increased moles and freckles, kidney dysfunction and swelling of the brain.
Melanotan is not approved for sale or use as a tanning agent in Australia. These tanning agents haven’t been assessed for their quality or safety. Since these tanning products are not approved for sale or use in Australia, you also have no way of knowing what’s in them, no matter what’s written on the label. They could be made with toxic, poor quality or counterfeit ingredients.
The TGA also warn about advertising such products and leave little to the imagination by reminding readers that “all media types visible to the public” are included and liable as breaches under the TGA Advertising Code. More so, they have “a dedicated workforce to investigate the inappropriate and unlawful manufacturing, distribution, sale, import and advertising of therapeutic goods”. Let’s hope the warning is heeded.
Meryl Dorey
Regularly warned, reminded, debunked, corrected and revealed to have a striking aversion to the truth is one Meryl Dorey, founder of The Australian Vaccination-risks Network and owner of a Very Big Tag (VBT) on this website. Meryl has been fact checked by AAP in the past for cultivating notions about child suicides, and claiming later the same year that vaccinated people are more likely to die from COVID. The latest very, very old chestnut wheeled out by Meryl during an interview on YouTube [relevant section here] with Australian Liberal MP and vaccine cynic, Russell Broadbent, is the baseless claim that medical students spend a mere few hours discussing vaccines during their entire time at medical school. This is a decades old lie and serves to support the preposterous assertion that anti-vaccine activists know more than medical professionals. Dorey told a gullible Broadbent:
When doctors study vaccination, and we had the curriculum for the New South Wales school of medicine at UNSW – University of New South Wales – and it was out of four years of medical school there was one morning where vaccinations were discussed. […]
I think that any parent who’s done a modicum of research will be able to know more about this issue than the average doctor.
Ah yes, doing your own research. Busted by AAP, Dorey replied to their queries saying the curriculum was from “many years ago” and she had spoken to “probably thousands” of doctors about vaccines. Doctors apparently supporting her version of vaccine risks. Both replies should be regarded as monumentally dubious. I recommend reading the AAP piece to appreciate medical training around immunisation, population health and the use of vaccines. However, one paragraph stood out for me. A spokesperson for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners observed:
When it comes to vaccines, as with other health issues, GPs are trained to consider the patient’s history and relevant risk factors, discuss the options available to the patient and any risks associated, and enable the patient to determine the most appropriate decisions about their own health care.
This isn’t the post to dig into this point, but bear in mind that anti-vaccine activist Judy Wilyman was awarded a PhD for a meandering literature review that made much of so-called “undone science” and unverified claims that vaccination programmes pose serious risks because they do not accomodate the genetic diversity and unique health needs of individuals. The above quote should serve as yet another reminder that the decision by the University of Wollongong to award that PhD, was and is demonstrably flawed.
Influencer charged with poisoning
The ABC joined the world’s media reporting on a 34 year old QLD mother and social media influencer, who has been charged with torture and giving her baby unauthorised medications, with the aim of attracting donations. It was a simple, if repulsive tactic; inform followers of your child’s illness, then create and exacerbate symptoms filmed to elicit sympathy. Police allege up to $60,000 was raised this way. The crowdfunding platform, GoFundMe, is presently refunding donors. It was also reported that after hospital staff improved the child’s health, the woman filled additional prescriptions and recommenced the abuse. The drug, carbamazepine, had been stopped by treating doctors due to fears it was causing seizures. Last week the woman was charged with 11 offences.
5 counts of administering poison with intent to harm
3 counts of preparation to commit crimes with dangerous things
Torture
Making Child Exploitation Material
Fraud
On 28 January a Brisbane Magistrates Court heard the woman allegedly hid her then 12 month old daughter under a blanket prior to administering unprescribed substances via a nasal tube. The child, now 18 months, was born with tuberous sclerosis, a genetic disorder which caused benign tumours in organs and can lead to epileptic seizures. Doctors believe the illegal medication administration caused further seizures in this child. The woman was caught on CCTV fiddling with her daughter’s nasogastric tube and handling a syringe, which was unrelated to her daughter’s medication. In the timeframe observed, the child went from being alert and awake to unconscious – a symptom not related to her condition.
The ABC reported on 29 January that the seizures, unexplained loss of consciousness and a cardiac arrest between August to October 2024, led the baby’s medical team to carry out high risk surgeries on intra-cranial tumours caused by the child’s genetic condition, believing them to be the causal factor. However, after the surgery the woman’s conduct was discovered. Drug screening revealed “the presence of carbamazepine and other non-prescribed medications in the baby’s system”. Bail was granted on condition the woman have no contact with her daughter other than via supervised audiovisual visits.
This will prove an interesting case with respect to the woman’s defence or indeed the reasons behind her behaviour. No doubt Factitious disorder imposed on another (FDIA), originally Münchausen syndrome by proxy, is an explanation that provides answers. But in the age of social media speckled with complex reasons driving individuals to behave antisocially, illegally or in pursuit of their own malignancies, might this be too simple an answer? Critical thinking and rationality are frequently jettisoned by influencers. Perhaps we should be seeking to understand how social media influences certain users, as much as we seek to grasp how they use it to influence others.
Religious cult guilty of manslaughter
Fourteen members of a religious cult that believed God would heal an 8 year old insulin dependent type 1 diabetic and later raise her from the dead, have been found guilty of manslaughter in a judge only trial in the Brisbane Supreme Court, report the ABC. Elizabeth Struhs was denied her insulin, became critically unwell over several days and died in Toowoomba 3 years ago this month. As she suffered, the cult “prayed and sang” rather than contact emergency services. After Elizabeth died, they waited for more than 24 hours before contacting police. The Court heard the group rejected modern medicine “and put their full trust in the healing power of God”.
Being questioned by police the child’s mother, Kerrie Struhs, told police she hadn’t lost faith in God, who could raise her daughter up regardless of where she was. In a classic example of biblical fundamentalist literacy, she rejected a funeral for her daughter because, “the bible says let the dead bury the dead”. Elizabeth’s father Jason Struhs was originally charged with murder, and also told police that he expected his daughter to rise from death. The deceased’s brother Zachary, told police:
We saw the healing and we know that she was healed from the diabetes. The sickness of her natural death could have been anything that comes up on anyone — that’s not for me to know, I’m not God.
Another member, Therese Stevens, sounded quite chuffed as she explained that Elizabeth will rise again and because of their beliefs they are not “as stressed out and freaked out and emotionally damaged as you would be if you knew you’d never see that person again”. In a ruling that should prove controversial, Justice Martin could not find the child’s father guilty of murder unless he had a full realisation his daughter would die from withdrawal of her insulin. The ABC reported:
Justice Burns said he was not satisfied of this beyond a reasonable doubt, stating there was a possibility in the “cloistered atmosphere of the church which enveloped [him] and which only intensified once he made the decision to cease the administration of insulin, he was so consumed by the particular belief in the healing power of God … that he never came to the full realisation Elizabeth would probably die”.
For a similar reason he did not find cult leader Brendan Stevens guilty of murder, but found his claim that he did not influence Jason Struhs to be “arrant nonsense”. Justice Martin also found all other members influenced Jason to withhold insulin and medical care and thus, “counselled and aided in the unlawful killing of Elizabeth”. Of the 14 members, 8 were from the Stevens family, 3 from the Struhs family, there was one couple and one individual. Elizabeth’s sister Jayde who had not been on trial spoke outside the court. Whilst happy with the outcome of the trial she said the “system failed to protect Elizabeth in the first place”. In a revealing comment Jayde added:
We are only here today because more wasn’t done sooner to protect her or remove her from an incredibly unsafe situation in her own home.
Who will win this years Bent Spoon award dear reader? Why, the perpetrator of the most preposterous piece of paranormal or pseudo-scientific piffle, I hear you say. Yes indeed. But what a sterling collection of viable candidates there are. Judges face a challenging pile to sort through.
To find out who takes the gong we must wait until the winner is announced at Skepticon XL, which is being held courtesy of Australian Skeptics in Sydney over 23-24 November. To find out more about the Bent Spoon Award you can catch up here. To read up on this years nominations you can visit this page of proud piffle pushers. The predatory pseudoscientific pandemonium includes last year’s winner Ross Coulthart for his straight faced claim that Donald Trump fears for his life, should he reveal what he knows about UFOs/UAP. Coulthart also squeezed in an interview with Uri Geller during which he said:
I strongly believe there is a phenomenon of unidentified anomalous phenomena that is probably non-human, that is engaging with this planet.
Oh my, Ross. A phenomenon of phenomena? Really? There’s also one Cael O’Donnell clutching to the title of Australia’s Number One Medium and using the thoroughly debunked Spirit Box to tune in to so-called messages from the dead. Social media has been seemingly kind to Cael. I suspect Bent Spoon judges might not. For inflicting AstroTash on nightly news viewers, Channel 7 and news director Anthony De Ceglie are also nominated. Pharmacare Laboratories which popped up here recently thanks to claims relating to “clinically proven” Sambucol, are nominated for Adult Vita Gummies vitamin supplements. Marketed as “backed by science, memory and mind, seriously good, and triple immune support”, Vita Gummies for kids have already won a Choice Shonky, whilst the TGA are keeping a close eye on them via compliance reviews.
When you suddenly hear of a “medical wonder” you’re right to suspect it’s anything but. This is exactly the case with photobiomodulation. Sciencey yes, genuine no. Chiropractor Genevieve Dharamaraj claims a red torch light, when pressed against the heads of autistic children is “basically building new pathways in the brain and we can do that with cutting edge technology like photobiomodulation”. Outrageous stuff, and not missed by Media Watch. Another supporting chiropractor Kyle Daigle, sells the lights for US$8,000. Genuine experts label it pseudoscience. All the red flags were missed by channels 7, 9 and radio station 4BC, earning them all a nomination.
Our next nominee is erstwhile “controversial” Catalyst reporter Maryanne Demasi. Thanks to COVID, she has found her calling as an anti vaxxer and conspiracy theorist. Demasi narrates The Truth About COVID-19 Shots, which recounts the baseless claim that COVID-19 vaccines are contaminated with DNA, in addition to the usual grab bag of conspiracies. The film recounts the mythical beliefs of ex-barrister Julian Gillespie who sculpted the COVID vaccine court cases in Australia. Demasi focuses in depth on the Fidge v Pfizer case and the anti-vax fallout I’ve blogged about here. Because of that and other pertinent developments I shall revisit the Demasi caper in short order.
In a similar vein we find, unsurprisingly, that Port Hedland Council have also been nominated. The council voted 5-2 in favour of a motion to call for the immediate suspension of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. The bogus claim that these vaccines are contaminated with DNA was again a feature here. It was brought forward by Adrian McRae who has a history of anti-COVID vaccine activity. Proving he’s no cooker, WA premier Roger Cook, memorably told the council to “stick to knitting”, suggesting they had “gone off the rails”.
Also from Western Australia, comes the focus on that state’s Cancer Council and the manner in which they offer the complementary therapies reiki and reflexology. This has earned Cancer Council WA a nomination. Due to the seriousness of this issue, it deserves some examination here. Whilst Cancer Council Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory, ACT, QLD and NSW discuss and provide information on cancer and complementary medicines, they do not have the promotional tone or confusing claims found on the WA site. Let’s break that down a bit.
Landing on the national Cancer Council page or a state’s Cancer Council page and typing “complementary” into the search field yields a variety of results. Some states such as Tasmania, QLD and the NT direct you firstly to the national site’s Understanding Complementary TherapiesPDF. It’s a comprehensive resource and goes into appreciating the perils associated with “alternative” therapies and offers hints on how patients should navigate all promised therapies. It is prefaced by:
During your cancer journey you may hear about, or become interested in, complementary therapies. There are many therapies on offer and information about these can be confusing. The information below will help you to make informed and safe choices.
Other states such as Victoria, NSW and SA provide an extensive information page and always direct the reader to the same PDF located on their own server, such as this example in Victoria. Victoria state:
Complementary therapies are said to focus on the whole person, not just the cancer. They include practices like massage and yoga, as well as medicines that you swallow or apply to the skin. Complementary therapies are used with conventional medicines and may help people cope better with the physical and emotional impact of cancer, as well as side effects caused by conventional cancer treatments. There is no evidence complementary therapies can treat or cure cancer itself.
For example, the impact of healthy diet and exercise during conventional cancer treatment is appreciated today. We see that SA include in their information on complementary therapy; “Some have been scientifically tested and shown to work. Research into complementary therapies and medicines is growing”. Visiting the WA website we read when it comes to reiki, which is the ineffectual practice of moving hands near a patient; “People use reiki to improve physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.” And also:
Evidence: There is no reliable evidence that reiki has any benefits. Anecdotal reports suggest that reiki is calming and relaxing, often helping to relieve pain and anxiety, reduce stiffness and improve posture.
Which tells us for some, reiki has a placebo effect or may induce calmness due simply to belief in energy therapies. Anecdotes can never be regarded to “suggest” anything, which can be better understood with research. In discussing reiki, Understanding Complementary Therapies states on page 9, “There is no scientific evidence of an energy field or that energy therapies have any benefits“. There is also no evidence reflexology has a genuine impact on improving health. Even Cancer Council WA state it is based on a belief. The placebo effect it likely produces is evident in this summary on the same page.
Evidence: Clinical trials have shown that reflexology reduces pain and anxiety and helps improve quality of life, particularly for those receiving palliative care.
Australian Skeptics’ executive officer, Tim Mendham has looked further into the claims by Cancer Council WA regarding use of these therapies and reports also, that reflexology and reiki are no longer covered by the NDIS. There are many potential problems when non-evidence based practices are introduced alongside genuine treatments. The distinction should always be abundantly clear and this is not the case for Cancer Council WA.
One such potential problem brings us to the next nomination. Elle MacPherson has made absurd claims her breast cancer “manifested” due to her emotional and spiritual state. She has further alluded to a holistic cure, despite having had seemingly successful surgery for the cancer. With the current impact of social media this is potentially quite dangerous. Her promotion of dishonest wellness guru Simone Laubscher, who also contends her own cancer was cured with an attitude change, is covered here on ABC’s 7.30 programme.
Finally, channel 7 manage yet another nomination alongside David Miles and his latest impossible rain-making, drought-defying technology, “Atmospherica”. Seven offered no criticism or expert opinion to Miles’ claims that he has a device that generates DNA-like code based instructions to atmospheric pressure systems, permitting him control of “the shape, velocity and trajectory of an approaching event.” Media Watch plonks this porky in its place revealing some great quotes: “PT Barnum style bunkum… technical description…is gibberish”.
So, if you wish to pooh pooh the perpetrator of the most preposterous piece of paranormal or pseudo-scientific piffle, you know what to do.
Last week Jane Hansen passed away from glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. Jane was a deeply committed and focused journalist who utilised evidence to challenge pseudoscience, scams and disinformation. Jane regularly used truth to expose those who profited from exploitation of the vulnerable. She had journalistic skills equal to multiple tasks. Her presentation style and writing made that abundantly clear.
Consequently, Jane’s colleagues have recently offered other adjectives to describe her as a journalist. Esteemed, celebrated, legendary, star, courageous, compassionate, revered, renowned, tireless, passionate, crusader, genuinely funny, a giant, a hero, a pioneering female, a warrior for truth. Social media reflected the extent of the respect Jane had engendered over the years. Amazing, awesome, tireless warrior, dedicated, excellent, great… and more. A quick search for Jane’s name yields a veritable stampede of honorific headlines, all jostling to make individual statements, yet all condensing around one notion: Praise.
Respected Australian journalist, Ray Martin offered this summary:
“Jane Hansen gave journalism a good name. She was formidable, energetic and ethical.
“She fought relentlessly for the underdog and the disadvantaged – especially women and Indigenous Australians.
“Jane was smart, funny and a reliable friend. We’ll miss her pursuit of excellence, as she tried to keep the bastards honest.”
Jane was also a loving and loved mother, sister and an adored friend of many. I knew Jane only through the occasional email exchange or direct messaging on social media, yet often enjoyed her well known talent for making people laugh. I’ve lost count of the number of times I consulted an article Jane had written to orient myself regarding a specific anti-vaccine insult, or from whom a certain deceit had arisen. One highlight for me was Jane’s work in the making, production and promotion of Big Shots: Anti-Vaxxers Exposed. Made in the early, pre-vaccine days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jane capably bridged the harm that anti-vaccine lobbying had already caused in Australia, and the foreseeable damage COVID conspiracy theories would inevitably bring.
Readers familiar with the tactics of vaccine conspiracy theorists can certainly guess, or may well be aware, of how they have reacted to this news. Fortunately, Jane made a lasting schism in their fragile credibility, leaving in her wake a surging wash of evidence-based reasoning, powerful enough to smother both their deceit and vulgarity. Jane always focused on presenting the facts. Her critics focused on attacking the person. On the day Big Shots aired in 2021, Jane was interviewed on Sky News, and shared this observation, which in my mind reflects both her sense of fairness and respect for sound public health.
I don’t have a problem with questioning a vaccine. This is a new vaccine, we want to know if it’s safe. There’s no point in having an unsafe vaccine; we all want a safe vaccine. But some of the misinformation that’s being spread is just ludicrous.
Jane’s career was extensive, including her role as a war correspondent for Network 10 in both Iraq and Bosnia, later working on the current affairs programme Hard Copy. She worked at Channel Nine for fourteen years. Jane co-authored Boned, the eye-opening book on boys-club mentality in TV media, and also authored the deeply personal and emotional Three Seasons. Her own experiences aided her unbiased assessment of Kathleen Folbigg, culminating in Jane writing and presenting the popular podcast Mother’s Guilt. Of course, Jane also managed her extensive and impressive career at The Sunday Telegraph.
Jane’s tireless campaigning was instrumental to the introduction of the Abbott/Turnbull government’s No Jab, No Pay/Play policies. Introduced in 2016, this public health initiative has seen an ongoing increase in life-saving childhood vaccination and is regarded as an overwhelming success. Jane’s reporting on anti-vaccine responses to it continue to educate the community. The same can be said for her criticism of anti-fluoridation conspiracies. In 2018 Jane was the inaugural winner of The Barry Williams Award for Skeptical Journalism. Australian Skeptics Inc. explain:
The Barry Williams Award for Skeptical Journalism is awarded for journalistic work that critically analyses or exposes issues related to pseudoscience or the paranormal. The award is dubbed “The Wallaby” after Barry’s alter ego of Sir Jim R Wallaby, which he used for some of his more whimsical pieces published in The Skeptic magazine. In addition to a commemorative certificate, $2000 is awarded to the recipient or to a charity or cause of their choice.
Jane Hansen awarded the “Wallaby” 2018
Jane’s respect for evidence-based public health policies was linked to her desire for a more just world. In addition to her work exposing pseudoscience, Jane also reported on childhood muscular dystrophy, childhood medication, childhood cancer, cardiac health, teen vaping, IVF clinics, endangered animals, diabetes, organ donation and much more. Claire Harvey described Jane as “the most passionate journalistic crusader” she’d ever known. Jane’s work will remain and continue to positively influence others.
As a final note I’d like to stress there is no such thing as turbo cancer and no evidence COVID-19 vaccines cause cancer. Jane passed away late on 6th August after being diagnosed less than two years ago with glioblastoma, a particularly aggressive form of brain cancer. Outside of inherited syndromes or exposure to radiation, the cause of glioblastomas is not known. More common in older adults, they may occur at any age. Research has not identified anything that can prevent development of glioblastoma.
Losing In The Lucky Country 