Heads They Win, Tails We Lose

The report details how corporate interests corrupt science through research suppression, ghostwriting, and the vilification of scientists, while also manipulating federal agencies, Congress, and the judiciary. It assesses the initial steps taken by the Obama administration to improve transparency and scientific integrity and provides a comprehensive set of recommendations for further federal and private-sector reforms to ensure policy is based on independent science.

• Corporations manipulate scientific research by terminating or suppressing studies with negative results, employing biased study designs, and using ghostwriting to plant articles in scientific journals that obscure corporate sponsorship.
• Private interests shape public perception by exaggerating scientific uncertainty, attacking the credibility of scientists, and using front groups to maintain an illusion of independence.
• Corporate influence undermines federal agency effectiveness through the 'revolving door'—where officials move between government and regulated industries—and by corrupting scientific advisory panels with members who have undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
• Corporate interests exert undue influence on Congress through massive lobbying expenditures and campaign contributions, which can lead legislators to challenge scientific consensus and delay action on science-based problems.
• The judicial system is exploited by corporate interests through multimillion-dollar state judicial campaigns and by using courts to bully scientists or reject scientific evidence based on non-expert interpretations.
• The Obama administration implemented several initial reforms to restore scientific integrity, including appointing top scientists to senior roles, issuing guidelines for agency scientific integrity policies, and increasing government transparency through the Open Government Directive.
• Despite early reforms, the report notes continued political interference, such as the White House's decision in September 2011 to prohibit the EPA from issuing ground-level ozone standards based on the best available science due to corporate influence.
• Essential future federal reforms include strengthening whistle-blower protections for scientists, reforming the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) to limit conflicts of interest, and creating a federal registry for all scientific research submitted to agencies.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2012). Heads They Win, Tails We Lose. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/heads-they-win-report.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Heads They Win, Tails We Lose. 2012. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/heads-they-win-report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Heads They Win, Tails We Lose |date=February 2012 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/heads-they-win-report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2012heads, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Heads They Win, Tails We Lose}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2012}, month = feb, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/heads-they-win-report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }