conflict of interest

I bought my first electronic cigarette (e-cigarette, e-cig) in 2012. After a month of smoking and using an e-cig (vaping), I finished off my last pack of Camels and gave up tobacco forever.
In honor of Thanksgiving, it is time to turn to the beloved cranberry.
In Act I, scene iv of Hamlet, Marcellus warns us, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." Likewise, something is rotten in the state of academic science.
There is a stinking, pathetic double standard at the heart of scientific publishing, as well as science communication in general:
The New York Times has some of the worst science coverage in the nation, its Tuesday section notwithstanding.