via the DailyTelegraph NZ World

Former BBC health correspondent Michele Paduano says senior editors repeatedly blocked his attempts to report on emerging scientific and legal findings questioning the safety of water fluoridation, dismissing the material as “scaremongering.”

According to a report by the Children’s Health Defense, Paduano, who reported for the broadcaster for 30 years, told a Fluoride Action Network press conference this week that he pursued the story after a 2024 US federal court ruling concluded that standard fluoridation levels posed an “unreasonable risk” to children.

Despite interviews arranged with experts and new evidence from cohort studies, BBC editors cancelled his coverage, insisted the science hadn’t changed and accused him of “bias”, even after a leading pro-fluoridation adviser acknowledged the UK may need to reconsider its dosage guidelines.

Paduano escalated the issue to senior BBC leadership, arguing that suppressing new information misled the public, but received no meaningful response and ultimately left the embattled state-funded organisation.

He says subsequent BBC reporting on fluoridation expansions ignored the US judgment and emerging research, reflecting what he sees as systemic bias and a desire to avoid “worrying audiences.”

The BBC, in responses to formal complaints, defended its approach by citing majority expert opinion from bodies such as the WHO and CDC, insisting it must maintain a high bar for reporting potential health risks. Critics, including FAN scientists, argue this stance amounts to censorship that undermines public trust in science and the Legacy media.