ABSTRACT
Scientifi c advice plays an important role in modern politics (Jasanoff, 1990). This chapter explores the relationships between scientifi c expertise and politics in the context of crisis management, in particular when it appears that scientifi c advice follows political expediency rather than scientifi c evidence. I demonstrate that after two environmental disasters, the Spanish government defended political decisions by selecting loyal scientists and by avoiding scientists who might speak out to the media. The cases in question are two ecological disasters that caused international alarm, where the political establishment could be criticised for failure in environmental affairs. I show how the government’s public relations strategy amounted to an ‘instumentalisation of scientifi c expertise’ in the cases of Doñana (1998) and Prestige (2002). However, this ‘instrumentalising’ strategy was thwarted in the latter case by whistle blowing and Spanish scientists’ protests.
