Statistics: Why the Truth Matters - Tim Harford

Tim Harford, Financial Times columnist and presenter of Radio 4's "More or Less", argues that politicians, businesses and even charities have been poisoning the value of statistics and data. From the tobacco companies in the fifties to the arguments of the Brexit campaign, Tim Harford takes us on a tour of truths, facts and the weapon that is doubt. Surely fact-checking websites and rational thinking are the best weapons to convince people of the truth? Or is in fact the truth simply not good enough. Do we have time or any inclination to hear it? Maybe we need to start with something simpler. Perhaps arousing people's curiosity might be just as important.

Watch Tim make his case in the latest of the successful Oxford Mathematics Public Lecture series.