Balanced reporting is one of the bedrock principles of journalism. The news media is supposed to present all sides of a story so the public gets a comprehensive view of the topic in question. But this principle is easily abused by journalists with an agenda who seek to fabricate a scandal when one doesn’t actually exist.

The Washington Post deployed this deceptive tactic in textbook fashion on November 20, telling readers that replacing toxic lead water lines with PVC pipe “could carry its own risks.” Although conceding that “water officials argue plastic pipes pose no health risks,” the Post immediately followed up by warning that “some advocacy groups are raising the alarm.” 

The problem with this framing is that PVC pipe is safe, durable, and affordable — which is why city managers everywhere are using it to revitalize their crumbling water infrastructure. Now, the media is responding by treating agenda-driven ideologues as objective experts with no stake in the issue. 

As a result, the Post story is laden with blatant scientific mistakes and half-truths that will badly mislead the paper’s audience. Let’s examine the specifics.

Vinyl chloride isn’t PVC

The Post correctly reported two facts: PVC pipe is made with a chemical called vinyl chloride (VCM), and “Many industry and water officials argue plastic pipes pose no health risks.” 

But the story went off the rails after that. The Post then asserted that “There is an ongoing debate about the amount of vinyl chloride that’s in PVC pipes and whether the substance can leach into drinking water.”

Simply put, there’s no debate about vinyl chloride leaching into drinking water. As we pointed out to another news outlet just days ago, contaminants in drinking water–regardless of the pipe material that transports the water–are tightly regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The agency’s drinking water regulations are “legally enforceable primary standards” that “protect public health by limiting the levels of contaminants in drinking water.” This includes vinyl chloride. 

The Post excluded this key piece of context and argued that “environmental advocates are sounding the alarm about the threat of exposure through drinking water.” The proper response to this claim is, “so what?” Environmental activist groups say lots of things about plastic — most of it completely false. The billionaire-funded NGO quoted in the Post story, Beyond Plastics, is infamous for deceiving the public about the safety of vinyl chloride, as we documented here.

Resurrecting cancer myths

For instance, The Post notes that activists claim “Vinyl chloride has been linked with liver, brain, lung and breast cancer, and other health problems.” That’s terribly misleading, because the last case of cancer linked to very high industrial vinyl chloride exposure was reported in 1974. Such cases have been “virtually eliminated,” the CDC concluded more than 20 years ago. 

The public in 2024 need not worry because studies have found that finished PVC products (like water pipes) contain essentially undetectable amounts of vinyl chloride that cannot cause harm. The CDC has also concluded that “the majority of the general population is not expected to be exposed through ingestion of drinking water,” which means their cancer risk from VCM is all but non-existent. 

Rather than report these facts from credible public health agencies, the Post quoted a researcher “who … hasn’t specifically studied PVC piping, but he said based on other PVC products he has studied, he believes many chemicals can leach from pipes, too.” We’ll side with the CDC and EPA over a single scientist who lacks the appropriate expertise every time. 

Conclusion

Balance remains an important standard in journalism; however, it should not be used to direct readers away from the truth. If one side of a “debate” is right and the other is wrong, the media has an obligation to say so to the public. Scaremongering may earn the Post more ad revenue, but it does everybody else a terrible disservice.