New autism fears?

As well as noting that Dr Wakefield is “Tall, wearing a deep green polo shirt, chinos and outdoor jacket against the rain”, The Observer also runs a piece entitled “New health fears over big surge in autism“. The piece is notable because:

1. No new data is presented which would make sense for them to mention MMR vaccine.
2. The reason MMR vaccine is mentioned is because two academics “privately believe that the surprisingly high figure [of autism] may be linked to the use of the controversial MMR vaccine.” Interestingly, one of those academics appears to be Dr Carol Stott.
3. Having a newspaper headline with the words “New Health fears” is a self-fulfilling prophecy.