Oprah Winfrey has dumped Dr. Oz’s radio show from her media empire after numerous challenges to his scientific integrity, according to the New York Daily News story. This move comes after months of criticism of Dr. Oz’s endorsement of quack cures, often for weight loss. Oz has hailed the discredited Ducan Diet, and numerous other weight loss schemes. He defended a dubious clinical trial before a skeptical Senate Committee which was slammed by John Oliver.
Dr. Oz told the Senate that his on-air clinical trial of one weight loss product was exempt from the Institutional Review Board procedures of his employer, the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. After this, I wrote to Brenda Ruotolo, Executive Director, Human Research Protection Office. Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons asking if the Columbia IRB had exempted this research and, if so, on what basis. She responded,
“Dear Mr. Downey, Thank you for contacting us regarding your concerns. We have looked into the matter of whether Columbia IRB approval is required for activities conducted on the Dr. Oz show. The purview of the Columbia IRB is articulated in the Standard Operating Procedures for the Columbia IRB, which you referenced in your June 25 email. Because activities in which Dr. Oz engages on his show are not conducted in accordance with his institutional responsibilities, those activities do not fall under the scope of the Columbia IRB.”
Gee, I don’t think his research was conducted under auspices of Oprah’s radio shows, but that didn’t stop her for standing up for integrity.