Reform UK Just Won Britain’s Least-Prestigious Award – For ‘Promoting Pseudoscience’

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https://bylinetimes.com/2025/10/29/reform-uk-just-won-britains-least-prestigious-award-for-promoting-pseudoscience/

Nigel Farage’s party was recognised for “widespread embrace of climate change denialism and antivaccine misinformation”

Skeptic magazine editor Michael Marshall presents the Rusty Razor Award to an absent Reform party. Photo: Dave Hughes. / The Skeptic

Reform UK has received an award for being the organisation that engaged in the “most prolific promotion of pseudoscience” during 2025.  

Each year the UK’s long-running publication for analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal, The Skeptic magazine, names their pseudoscientist of the year, and awards them the Rusty Razor prize.

The Rusty Razor this year went to Reform UK in recognition of “their widespread embrace of climate change denialism and antivaccine misinformation.” 

The award was announced in front of an audience of around 700 people at the QED science and skepticism conference in Manchester on Saturday night. 

In the Rusty Razor Award category, Nigel Farage’s party was recognised for ‘promoting pseudoscientific claims’.

Michael Marshall, Editor of The Sceptic, said: “Whilst the political positions Reform UK put forward are outside of the scope and remit of The Skeptic and our awards, their positions on science are not. 

“On current polling, Reform UK is the party with the most support in the country, yet they have shown that they have no problem with spreading pseudoscientific misinformation that aligns with the interests of their donors, no interest in vetting their members and candidates for holding dangerously misguided views about science and health, and no issue with fostering and indulging all manner of conspiracy theories if they think there’s a vote in it.”

Marshall branded Reform “a threat to science and reason, and deserving of being singled out as winners of our 2025 Rusty Razor award.”

https://bylinetimes.com/2025/10/29/reform-uk-just-won-britains-least-prestigious-award-for-promoting-pseudoscience/

Nigel Farage reminds you that he's the man that brought you Brexit and asks what could possibly go wrong.
Nigel Farage reminds you that he’s the man that brought you Brexit and asks what could possibly go wrong.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Nigel Farage explains the politics of Reform UK: Racism, Fake anti-establishmentism, Deregulation, Corporatism, Climate Change Denial, Mysogyny and Transphobia.
Nigel Farage explains the politics of Reform UK: Racism, Fake anti-establishmentism, Deregulation, Corporatism, Climate Change Denial, Mysogyny and Transphobia.
Continue ReadingReform UK Just Won Britain’s Least-Prestigious Award – For ‘Promoting Pseudoscience’

openDemocracy shortlisted for news provider of the year award

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Original article by Indra Warnes republished from Open Democracy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence

We’re up against industry giants at the British Journalism Awards for our work on the NHS, politics and civil rights

openDemocracy has been shortlisted for news provider of the year at the British Journalism Awards  | openDemocracy

OpenDemocracy has been shortlisted for the most prestigious prize of its 22-year history: news provider of the year at the British Journalism Awards.

We are one of six news organisations to be shortlisted for the award, putting us up against industry giants Sky News, The Guardian, The Times, the Daily Mail, and the Financial Times.

The news follows a year in which openDemocracy broke scandal after scandal in the UK, revealing the hands of lobbyists, corporations and vested interests behind crucial decisions about the NHShousing, the Covid inquiry and restrictions on protest.

Satbir Singh, the CEO of openDemocracy, said: “Being shortlisted for an award of this size is such a well-deserved boost for this brilliant team. And being up against five much larger newsrooms shows we really do punch above our weight.

“I’m extremely proud of how far we’ve come and look forward to our next chapter.”

Ramzy Alwakeel, the head of news, said: “I’m beyond proud of everyone. To come out of this year with our biggest-ever award nomination is a giant credit to this team’s brilliance and commitment.”

openDemocracy reporter Adam Bychawski has also been individually shortlisted in the health and life sciences category.

Adam was announced as a finalist for work that has caught ministers lying about new NHS centres, exposed a businessman getting rich off supplying unusable PPE, and highlighted how eating disorder patients have been failed by the government.

The winners will be announced on 14 December.

Original article by Indra Warnes republished from Open Democracy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence

Well done OpenDemocracy, well deserved.

Continue ReadingopenDemocracy shortlisted for news provider of the year award