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“Mistrust in science and a juicy gene-editing lawsuit” is the title of a STAT Readout LOUD podcast episode published October 1, 2026. Its central question is, “Why have so many Americans lost trust in science?” The latest figures cited here suggest a more precise answer: confidence among U.S. adults remains below its April 2020 level, but was broadly stable from 2024 to 2025. The episode also flags a lawsuit by Beam Therapeutics against a Chinese competitor, though its page does not identify the company or describe the case.
What the STAT episode covers
The episode page, published by STAT and credited to Adam Feuerstein, Elaine Chen, and Allison DeAngelis, frames a discussion around public trust in science and policy leaders’ role in mistrust. It also lists three other topics: a clinical update from UniQure on its Huntington’s gene therapy, Beam Therapeutics’ lawsuit against a Chinese competitor, and how Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are talking about GLP-1 products. Read the STAT episode page.
The page is an episode listing, not a full written investigation, and it does not provide a transcript. Its playful use of “juicy” should not be taken as evidence about the lawsuit’s merits or details.
What the latest polling says about confidence in scientists
Pew Research Center’s January 2026 report found that 77% of U.S. adults had a great deal or fair amount of confidence in scientists to act in the public’s best interests. The survey was fielded October 20–26, 2025. Pew said the result was similar to 76% the previous year, but below the 87% measured in April 2020. The figures point to a decline from the early pandemic period followed by recent year-over-year stability—not a continuing drop in the latest year. Pew Research Center’s January 2026 report.
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These percentages describe the share with at least a fair amount of confidence, not the share expressing a great deal of confidence alone. They also measure confidence in scientists to act in the public’s best interests; they are not a direct measure of trust in every scientific institution, policy decision, or individual researcher.
How the earlier figures fit
A Pew survey in September 2023 found that 73% of U.S. adults had a great deal or fair amount of confidence in scientists. In that survey, 27% said they had not too much or no confidence, compared with 12% in April 2020. Those dated results provide historical context, but the 2025 survey is the more recent reading. Pew Research Center’s November 2023 report.
What is known about Beam Therapeutics’ lawsuit
STAT’s episode page confirms only that Beam Therapeutics filed a lawsuit against a Chinese competitor. It does not name the competitor or establish what Beam alleges, which court is handling the case, when it was filed, whether the defendant has responded, or the case’s current procedural status. Those details should not be inferred from the episode title.
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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →For a reliable account of a lawsuit, the key facts are the parties named in the complaint, the claims actually pleaded, the court or other forum, the events and dates alleged, the defendant’s response, and the case’s procedural status. The available episode page does not answer those questions. Allegations in a complaint, if later confirmed in a reliable source, would remain allegations unless established through the legal process.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why the science-trust question matters in health care
Confidence in science affects more than public debate: it can shape how people evaluate medical evidence and interact with health services. In a 2019 New England Journal of Medicine perspective, Richard J. Baron, M.D., and Adam J. Berinsky, Ph.D., wrote, “Trust is the foundation of relationships between patients and the health care system.” Read the NEJM perspective.
That observation helps explain why the episode’s question is consequential, but it does not establish why confidence changed. The polling figures show the pattern; they do not by themselves identify its causes. A separate, relevant perspective is Dariusz Jemielniak’s 2026 book Anti-Science: Shortcuts to a Big Idea. Routledge lists paperback ISBN 9781041212980, hardback ISBN 9781041210528, and ebook ISBN 9781003726517. The book is optional further reading, not evidence for the polling results or the Beam case. Routledge’s book listing.
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