Major Scientific Publisher Retracts More Than 500 Papers
One of the world’s largest open-access journal publishers is retracting more than 500 papers, based on the discovery of unethical actions.
London-based Hindawi, which publishes more than 200 peer-reviewed journals across multiple disciplines, stated that its research team identified in June “irregularities” in the peer review process in some of the journals.
Liz Ferguson, a senior vice president for John Wiley & Sons, Hindawi’s U.S.-based parent company, said in a Sept. 28 statement:
“All Hindawi journals employ a series of substantial integrity checks before articles are accepted for publication.
Following thorough investigation, we identified that these irregularities in the peer review process were the result of suspicious and unethical activities.
Since identifying this unethical activity and breach of our processes, we began proactively adding further checks and improving our processes and continue to do so,”
As a result of the investigation, 511 papers will be retracted.
The papers have all been published since August 2020.
Sixteen journals published the papers that are being retracted.
Some of the authors and editors who contributed to the articles may have been “unwitting participants” in the unethical scheme, according to Ferguson.
She said the scheme involved “manipulation of the peer review process and the infrastructure that supports it.”
Richard Bennett, vice president of researcher and publishing services for Hindawi, told the Retraction Watch blog that the review uncovered “coordinated peer review rings,” which featured reviewers and editors coordinating to get papers through peer review.
Neither Ferguson nor Bennett identified any of the suspects.
Bennett said the investigation started after an editor flagged some suspicious papers.
He also said the individuals identified by the review as “compromised” will be banned from Hindawi journals.
Other people were described as “potentially compromised.”
“These efforts, and the individuals who participate in them, impede scientific discovery and impact the validity of scholarly research and will not be tolerated,” Ferguson said.
She also said the company has been in touch with other publishers and industry bodies.
Further retractions are expected as the investigation proceeds.
Hindawi journals include Advances in Agriculture, the Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology, and the Journal of Nanotechnology.
See more here theepochtimes
Header image: Tukuz.com
Bold emphasis added
Please Donate Below To Support Our Ongoing Work To Defend The Scientific Method
PRINCIPIA SCIENTIFIC INTERNATIONAL, legally registered in the UK as a company 
incorporated for charitable purposes. Head Office: 27 Old Gloucester Street, London WC1N 3AX.
Trackback from your site.
ANDREW ROUSE
| #
It would be helpful to know which papers are being redacted; which topics, disciplines in particular.
Reply
Arizona
| #
ANYONE connected to the CRIME ring KNOWN AS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA OR CANADA..has NO creditiblity,IF anyone believes anything the scientists,government agencys,medical,and the list is longer then your arm of compromised people and education centers,EVERYTHING IS SO COMPROMISED IN WESTERN COUNTRIES,Nothing they say or do can be relied on to be true…THATS how bad their trust levels are,AT ZERO,never believe anything they say,and DAM sure do not waste your time reading it..ALL THESE DEVILS ARE EXPERT LIARS…
Reply
K Kaiser
| #
Just amazing!
How could those papers have been circumventing the former, supposedly, rigorous screening and peer reviews?
Reply
Ken Hughes
| #
The question is;-
Do these papers expose the Covid lies, meaning this was more censorship, or, do they support the mainstream agenda, in which case, there is hope?
Reply
Rain Forest
| #
The only reason these papers would be removed would be to displace the evidence of fraud. There is no other explanation.
Reply
Todd Koeppel
| #
This article is severely lacking in details. What was the nature of the “unethical actions”? Being as they are deemed unethical, that implies that there is some motivation behind the actions to achieve some goal. We have no idea what that goal or motivation is.
Reply
Scattergood Baines
| #
August 2020? There is no doubt what these peer reviewed papers re
Late to; all things Covid, from masks,/distancing/lockdowns to Hydroxycloroquine/ivermectin to the ‘safe and effective’ nonsense.
Not to expose this ring of perps is criminal itself. This only adds to the distrust (which imo is well called for👍)
Reply