Monsanto’s Sway Over Research Is Seen in Disclosed Emails
An academic involved in writing research funded by Monsanto, John Acquavella, a former Monsanto employee, appeared to express discomfort with the process, writing in a 2015 email to a Monsanto executive,
“I can’t be part of deceptive authorship on a presentation or publication.” He also said of the way the company was trying to present the authorship: “We call that ghost writing and it is unethical.”
A Monsanto official said the comments were the result of “a complete misunderstanding”
that had been “worked out,” while Mr. Acquavella said in an email on Tuesday that “there was no ghostwriting” and that his comments had been related to an early draft and a question over authorship that was resolved.
In the email traffic, Monsanto asked Mr. Miller if he would be interested in writing an article on the topic,
and he said, “I would be if I could start from a high-quality draft.”
The article appeared under Mr. Miller’s name, and with the assertion
that “opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.” The magazine did not mention any involvement by Monsanto in preparing the article.
Our scientists have on occasion collaborated with Dr. Miller on other pieces.”
James Dao, the Op-Ed editor of The Times, said in a statement, “Op-Ed contributors to The Times must sign a contract requiring them to avoid any conflict of interest,
and to disclose any financial interest in the subject matter of their piece.”
The documents also show that a debate outside Monsanto about the relative safety of glyphosate
and Roundup, which contains other chemicals, was also taking place within the company.