Quackademia? Mass-Media Delegitimation of Homeopathy Education

Abstract

In response to concerns about the standards of training for non-medically qualified homeopathic practitioners, between 1999 and 2009 a number of UK universities taught Bachelor of Science (BSc) degrees in homeopathy. All the courses were subsequently closed following media coverage of a vigorous campaign from scientists against the degree courses. A boundary-work analysis of 65 articles published in the UK print media reveals the use of metaphors from a number of different fields as rhetorical strategies to malign homeopathy education. As well as the commonly used contrasts of profit versus academic integrity, rationality versus faith and logic versus magic, media reports associated homeopathy with new universities and Mickey Mouse degrees, both of which had been denigrated in the press previously. In the press coverage, much attention was also drawn to the fact that the method of repeatedly diluting homeopathic medicines defies both logic and common sense, and the plausibility argument became a decisive blow in the debate over the legitimacy of teaching homeopathy as a science degree. It seems that the boundary work sought to protect the authority of both science and medicine by expelling homeopathy from higher education. These findings contrast with previous studies that suggest that orthodox medicine has occasionally expanded to incorporate desirable aspects of complementary and alternative therapies. Scientists carry out boundary work not just to demarcate the boundaries of science and directly defend their own interests, but also to protect the authority of other allied professions.

A Twitter campaign against pseudoscience: The sceptical discourse on complementary therapies in Spain

“…The first country to do so was the United Kingdom, where CTs were regulated despite having traditionally been dismissed as charlatanism (Wahlberg, 2007, 2015). In 2007, certain university professors and scientists mobilised to protest against universities offering courses in CTs, contacting the media, sending letters to vice-chancellors (Chatfield et al, 2012; Colquhoun, 2007) and creating blogs (Caldwell, 2017). Regarding the pre-2007 media treatment of the issue, all pieces on universities offering CT courses were positive and neutral, but from 2007 onwards, those on education and homoeopathy became negative and adopted the stance defended by Colquhoun, one of the most visible critical scientists (Caldwell, 2017).…”

“…In 2007, certain university professors and scientists mobilised to protest against universities offering courses in CTs, contacting the media, sending letters to vice-chancellors (Chatfield et al, 2012; Colquhoun, 2007) and creating blogs (Caldwell, 2017). Regarding the pre-2007 media treatment of the issue, all pieces on universities offering CT courses were positive and neutral, but from 2007 onwards, those on education and homoeopathy became negative and adopted the stance defended by Colquhoun, one of the most visible critical scientists (Caldwell, 2017). In the case of the United Kingdom, the campaign was very visible and often in the media, and although Colquhoun (2013) himself believes that it was a success and the reason behind the closure of numerous courses, Chatfield et al (2012) put this down to financial straits.…”

Argumentative time work for legitimizing homeopathy: Temporal reasons for the acceptance of an alternative medical practice

“…These revisions may be rejected by some proponents leading to internal factions (Degele, 2005; Welsh et al, 2004), or they may generate epistemic and moral stress (Brosnan and Cribb, 2019). Other studies investigate processes of delegitimisation, which entail the use of rhetorical strategies in public discourse for denigrating CAM practices and defending the boundaries of science by means of contrasts such as academic integrity versus profit, rationality versus faith, or logic versus magic (Caldwell, 2017; Lewis, 2019).…”

Perfil sociodemográfico del usuario de la homeopatía en España

“…Aunque el Ministerio de Sanidad traspondrá la Directiva Europea 6 , en España ha habido un fuerte movimiento escéptico, que de forma directa o indirecta ha conseguido que disminuyan las ventas de tratamientos homeopáticos en un 14%, según el responsable de Boiron España 7 . Este tipo de reacción colectiva hacia esta terapia8, 9 contrasta con la plena integración que existe en otros países europeos, como Alemania, donde se practica en hospitales y es considerada una especialidad 10 . Estamos, pues, ante un escenario europeo diverso que se puede justificar por las diferentes regulaciones aplicadas, por la inclusión o no de estas terapias en el sistema de salud y por el factor sociocultural 11 .…”