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A three-member [USDA] Scientific Integrity Review Panel said Agricultural Research Service’s Jonathan Lundgren “did not provide credible and verifiable evidence to support his contention that his research was impeded and that he was restrained from communicating with the media and interacting with the broader scientific community.”
Lundgren’s whistleblower complaint against ARS before the Merit Systems Protection Board is proceeding.
. . . .
In his SIP complaint, Lundgren says he was subjected to “cumulative low-level harassment” after giving interviews to the press and serving as a reviewer for a Center for Food Safety study.
Lundgren said ARS superiors told him that his planned presentation for a European Food Safety Authority workshop pertained to “a very sensitive research topic and that (he) was not allowed to express any opinions on the matter – just data.”
The panel said ARS allowed Lundgren to participate in media interviews and submit manuscripts for publication after late March/early April of 2014, when Lundgren says he was told to refrain from talking to the press “and subjected to professional interference in violation of the USDA SIP.”
. . . .
The SIP says USDA scientists ”should refrain from making statements that could be construed as being judgements of or recommendations on USDA or any other federal government policy, either intentionally or inadvertently,” the panel said.
Read full, original post: Entomologist’s scientific integrity complaint rejected by USDA panel
