There are sadly people who love and work hard to do what they do ... and those who don't who are more there for the paycheck and / or only know as much to repe

There are sadly people who love and work hard to do what they do ... and those who don't who are more there for the paycheck and / or only know as much to repeat what they learned by rote and don't really fathom / appreciate the field they are in. As such, it's a problem everywhere, but IMO when it comes to scientists one bad apple tends to be very alarming for the fact these are the very people who are supposed to live by ... or at least understand the scientific method. Where there are repeated snafus in a field, it merely reinforces mistrust. The other side of the problem are those laypeople who put certain scientists on a pedestal, and may trust absolutely, putting any particular scientist above accepting bribes or being immune from letting their own beliefs get the better of their efforts - they'll continue to repeat any misinformation that appealed to them, long after the data is discredited or connection to a lobby group is exposed. Social media where users can block other's correcting their nonce comments is IMO the main problem, since that's now referred to as bullying, and asking social media to perform fact checking is a little bit BS since they themselves might not be that knowledgeable. Mainstream media also has a hand in fanning flames all in the name of click bait articles, and are loathed to set things right if it'd mean the discussion would instantly come to an end.