>> Around the time Chernobyl happened I remember that damages for the subsequent generations were widely sold as a fact by the media. The media did not come up

>> Around the time Chernobyl happened I remember that damages for the subsequent generations were widely sold as a fact by the media. The media did not come up with this idea on their own. As the linked book chapter clarifies, studies in mice had shown there was cause for concern and the concern was first expressed by scientists. The Chernobyl disaster was in 1986 and this study was published in 1991, and it is reporting on a large number of studies carried out in the preceding years. So it is reasonable to assume that the issue had not yet been settled at the time of the Chernobyl disaster. As is usually the case, the press and the public take some time to catch on with the scientific consensus, anyway, not to mention that there is no such thing as unanimous scientific consensus. To put it plainly: the media reported what the scientists were saying. I don't think anyone was trying to "sell" anything to anyone.