Paper withdrawn from Synthese

Massimo Pigliucci, head of the Philosophy Program at City University of New York, and Raphael Scholl from the Department of Philosophy at the University of Bern, have withdrawn a paper from Synthese. Here, with their permission, is the text of the letter they sent to the editors in chief:

To the Editors-in-Chief of Synthese

Dear Sirs,

It has come to our attention that the print edition of a recent special issue of Synthese titled “Evolution and Its Rivals” was preceded by a disclaimer which expressed regret at a perceived deviation from usual academic standards. As we understand it, this disclaimer was added by the Editors-in-Chief despite assurances to the issue editors that no such disclaimer would be added. Moreover, we understand that the disclaimer was added in response to pressure from proponents of so-called “intelligent design theory” (ID) who took offense at a critique of ID written by Prof. B. Forrest. Notably, this happened after the online publication of the article in question.

We are deeply concerned by these events. If the account given above is correct, we believe that the Editors-in-Chief of Synthese have treated their issue editors and their authors unprofessionally by casting aspersion on their academic conduct. Moreover, we fail to see why the article in question warranted the addition of a disclaimer. It seems to us that the article advanced philosophical arguments in a tone befitting critical academic discourse. Surely it is not a failure of “politeness or respect in phrasing” for an author to argue – even vehemently – that somebody else’s arguments are unfounded or based on prior ideological commitments.

Most importantly, however, we are concerned by the possibility of political and religious interest groups exerting influence on the publishing processes of an academic journal.

We hold Synthese in high regard and believe it to be among the very best venues for academic work in philosophy of science. However, in view of the concerns discussed above, we are withdrawing our manuscript currently under review at the journal, entitled “Abstraction in Scientific Models and the Research Program of Evolutionary Developmental Biology.” We hope that the Editors-in-Chief will issue a correction, explanation or apology concerning this matter so as to avoid permanent injury to Synthese’s reputation for excellence.

Yours faithfully,

Massimo Pigliucci
Philosophy Program, City University of New York, U.S.A.

Raphael Scholl
Department of Philosophy, University of Bern, Switzerland