How They Made Us Doubt Everything

Talc Tales: 3. ‘We may have problems’

Could companies clean up their talc? In the 1970s, talc companies worked out a plan to check their product for asbestos fibres. The problem was, mineralogist Sean Fitzgerald says the testing method they chose wasn’t sensitive enough to truly weed all asbestos fibres out. But this testing method was taken up not just in America but around the world and still informs the standards today. Companies can legally say their talc is ‘asbestos free’ if they’ve used this method, but there could still be trace amounts of asbestos fibres in the product. Meanwhile, epidemiologist Dan Cramer starts some research into a possible association between talc and ovarian cancer – but what does the latest research say? Presenter and Producer: Phoebe Keane
Sound mix: James Beard
Series Editor: Matt Willis

From smoking and cancer to climate change, this is the story of how to manufacture doubt. Investigating the industry response to claims there could be asbestos in make-up, and the tactics that could be used to cast doubt over the science and create controversy.