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Not everybody appreciates Slesin's work. Despite having a reputation for evenhandedness, he is seen in some industry circles as a crusader. "He's not alarmist or inflammatory," admits Bruce Dickerson, executive director of the Center for Office Technology, an industry-sponsored clearinghouse for information about VDT safety. "But he does represent a constituency that is not in the mainstream of science. ((The government agencies concerned with worker safety)) certainly don't believe there are adverse health effects."
For Slesin, the fact that the government has not taken the issue seriously is part of the problem. In his opinion, the studies linking higher incidences of cancer to low-frequency electromagnetic fields raise questions about the whole electromagnetic spectrum, including radiation from such ubiquitous sources as broadcast antennas, walkie-talkies and cellular telephones. But despite all the warning signs, there has been almost no research on the effects of long-term low-level exposure. "The U.S. has gone to extraordinary lengths not to study this problem," says Slesin. "It's as if we're terrified of what we might find out."