IWR Colloquium Summer Semester 2025 Science, Fiction: Uncovering Research Misconduct Without Eroding Trust

From accusations of plagiarism against Harvard's former president to the case of Stanford's Marc Tessier-Lavigne and over to the horrific case of Paolo Macchiarini's plastic windpipes -- scientific misconduct has exploded into the public eye in recent years. How can scientists and journalists cover such cases without undermining trust in the scientific process and our research institutions? Over the past five years, Jackson Ryan, HITS Journalist in Residence 2025, has been investigating cases of research misconduct at Australian universities, coming face to face with the problems in managing and investigating breaches. Along the way, he's learned some hard lessons about trust, transparency and the critical role watchdog journalists play in improving scientific practice.