– BMJ declared Andrew Wakefield a fraud on Jan. 5.
– Anderson Cooper called him a liar on CNN on Jan. 6.
– Brian Deer won Specialist Journalist of the Year for the story on April 5.
– Salon retracted “Deadly Immunity” on Jan. 16.
– The US Supreme Court blocked direct lawsuits of vaccine manufacturers on Feb. 22.
– The eradication of Rinderpest was marked in a ceremony on August 8.
– The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation stepped up their efforts to eradicate polio in 2011.
– CDC issued a measles warning on June 22.
– The NVIC ran several anti-vaccine PSAs in various venues in the US.
– Robert MacNeil was criticized for linking autism and vaccines on air in April.
– Stop the AVN sponsored a message that went over Meryl Dorey’s head in December.
– The New Yorker covered Paul Haggis & Scientology on Feb. 14.
– Janet Reitman and Hugh Urban both published major books on Scientology in the summer.
– The Village Voice and the Tampa Bay Times both covered Scientology revelations throughout the year.
– Harold Camping predicted the rapture on May 21 and armageddon on Oct. 21.
– Psychic Sally Morgan was caught apparently cheating on Sept. 11, and refused a test on Oct. 31.
– James Randi’s foundation went after James Van Praagh after appearing on Primetime Nightline on Aug. 17.
– Representatives of Stanislaw Burzynski threatened Andy Lewis and Rhys Morgan in November.
– Oprah Winfrey last daily show aired May 25. (Her Oprah Winfrey Network began last Jan. 1)
– Glenn Beck’s final Fox News program was June 30.
– Steve Novella appeared on The Dr. Oz Show on April 26.
– Expelled was auctioned back to the man who commissioned it on June 28.
– Penn & Teller Tell A Lie premiered on Discovery Channel on Oct. 5.
– Dale & Shannon Hickman got 6 years prison Oct. 31 in the faith healing death of their son.
– James Arthur Ray was convicted June 22 and sentenced Nov. 18 in the sweat lodge deaths.
– Peter Foster was also arrested on Nov. 18.
– Power Balance filed for bankruptcy protection on Nov. 18.
– Kevin Trudeau lost his appeal on Nov. 29.
– The final appeals in the Aum cult murders were exhausted on Nov. 21.
– “David Mabus” began a Twitter harassment campaign Jan. 19 that ended with his arrest on Aug. 16.
– The FDA and FTC warned consumers about HCG diet products in late November early December.
– The FDA warned Joe Mercola to stop claims about thermographic imaging on March 22.
– FCC fined TV stations for running video press releases (including one about Zicam) as news on March 24.
– FTC went after fake news sites promoting acai berry products on April 19.
– UK’s ASA extended their remit to the web March 1, and thousands of skeptic complaints followed, led by the Nightingale Collaboration.
– Simon Perry’s Fishbarrel software was released in April to support the effort.
– The first QEDcon was held in Manchester, UK on February 5 & 6.
– CSICON was held in New Orleans from October 27 through 30.
– Asteroid JoeNickell was announced at CSICON.
– Elevatorgate began with a YouTube on June 20 and continued through July and on.
– Centre for Inquiry Canada had a shake-up in management in November.
– Jose “Carlos” Alvarez was arrested on identity theft charges on Sept. 8.
– Lorne Trottier gave $5.5 million to McGill University in November to fund Dr. Joe Schwarcz’ anti-quack educational efforts.

Obituaries

– Robert Ader researched the mind-body link & placebos – February 20, 1932 – December 20, 2011.
– José Argüelles promoted “Harmonic Convergence” – January 24, 1939 – March 23, 2011.
– Sai Baba Indian guru and “god man” – November 23, 1926 – April 24, 2011.
– William C. Bequette coined the term “flying saucer” – Sept. 16, 1917 – April 24, 2011.
– Barry Blumberg Nobel laureate physician – July 28, 1925 – April 5, 2011.
– Bill Broderick Ontario humanist & skeptic – 1931 – October 10, 2011.
– Rob Buckman Humanist & TV personality –  August 22, 1948 – October 9, 2011.
– Joe Cooper Cottingley debunker – Feb 3, 1924 – Aug. 16, 2011.
– Hilary Evans Fortean researcher – March 6, 1929 – July 27, 2011.
– Walter M. Fitch evolutionary biologist, member NCSE – May 21, 1929 – March 11, 2011.
– Paul J. Gaylor Freedom From Religion Foundation – August 30, 1926 – May 5, 2011.
– Steven G. Gey attorney who litigated Edwards v. Aguillard – April 6, 1956 – June 9, 2011.
– Christopher Hitchens writer, journalist, raconteur, atheist – April 13, 1949 – December 15, 2011.
– Budd Hopkins father of the alien-abduction movement – June 15, 1931 – August 21, 2011.
– Miriam Karlin British actress, humanist, atheist – June 23, 1925 – June 3, 2011.
– Don Lapre “King of the Infomercials” – May 19, 1964 – October 2, 2011.
– Anthony Tobin Layng  anthropologist, skeptic – 1932 – June 12, 2011.
– Lynn Margulis evolutionary biologist – March 5, 1938 – November 22, 2011.
– Ernan McMullin philosopher who wrote on creationism – October 13, 1924 – February 8, 2011.
– Derek K. Miller writer, skeptic, atheist, husband, father – June 30, 1969 – May 3, 2011.
– Bette Orsini Pulitizer Prize winning journalist – December 2, 1925 – March 26, 2011.
– Steve Randak biology teacher who fought creationism – April 26, 1945 – August 23, 2011.
– Theodore Roszak writer, coined the term “counterculture” – November 15, 1933 – July 5, 2011.
– Linda Scarberry original “Mothman” eyewitness – June 10, 1947 – March 6, 2011.
– Niall Shanks philosopher of science concerned with creationism – January 18, 1959 – July 13, 2011.
– David Sencer head of CDC during the 1970s swine flu – November 10, 1924 – May 2, 2011.
– David Servan-Schreiber promoted non-standard cancer treatments – April 21, 1961 – July 24, 2011.
– Rob Solàrion Velikovsky researcher & promoter of “Planet X” – 1943 – February 2011.
– Richard Webster wrote about abuse scandal hysteria’s in England December 17, 1950 – June 24, 2011.
– Winstone Zulu AIDS activist – Jan. 7, 1964 – Oct. 12, 2011.

– Skeptic History facts are posted daily via social media and elsewhere, find out where on this page at the Skeptools blog.

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