Peterson Toscano's A Musing

Lies and Purveyors of Lies 2

Back in June I blogged about how Focus on the Family misused scientific studies to support their own claims. Well, they are back at it. This just in from Wayne Besen:

Truth Wins Out urged Time Magazine today to renounce a guest column written by James C. Dobson in this week's magazine after a second professor, Kyle Pruett, M.D. of the Yale School of Medicine, expressed concerns that the Focus on the Family leader "cherry picked" his work. In a letter to Time and Dobson, Dr. Pruett asked that Focus on the Family, "not quote from my research in your media campaigns, personal or corporate, without previously securing my permission."

The first professor to state that her work was used inaccurately by Dobson was New York University Professor Carol Gilligan, PhD. Yesterday she responded to Dobson's Time Magazine piece,

I was mortified to learn that you had distorted my work this week in a guest column you wrote in Time Magazine. Not only did you take my research out of context, you did so without my knowledge to support discriminatory goals that I do not agree with. What you wrote was not truthful and I ask that you refrain from ever quoting me again and that you apologize for twisting my work.

From what I understand, this is not the first time you have manipulated research in pursuit of your goals.

No, not the first time. This has been going on for years. Under the cover of being a kindly educated Christian child psychologist, Dobson spins lies about LGBT folks. It is one thing for a Christian leader to say he stands opposed to same-sex love, but quite another for him to lie and deceive others through misrepresenting research.

Wayne Besen at Truth Wins Out encourages folks to write to Patrick Smith, the editor of Time with the clear message, If the Right can't prove it, Don't use it. Write your comments to Patrick_Smith@timemagazine.com.

posted by Peterson Toscano @ 3:33 PM