Where Vergano's job is to report on a controversial debate, he instead attempts to influence the outcome of that debate. The storm swirls around Tierney's accusations of unethical, unscientific conduct by researchers in studying the Yanomami people of the Amazon River basin. Thus, the reader is left to infer from the data that humans are innately fierce and brutal in naturalistic conditions. This conclusion is highly controversial. Tierney's work draws into the spotlight some serious questions about Chagnon's methodology, and that is as it should be.
Scientists are subject to scrutiny.
However, Vergano reports the intra-disciplinary disagreement in melodramatic fashion. Rather than describing the scholastic debate forum, he projects an image of cartoonish researchers engaging in soap opera antics. The quotes he chooses, the tone of the piece, the focus on negative backbiting of Chagnon, all stir up trouble rather than address issues raised by Tierney in his book. Vergano also gratuitously dredges up old controversies in the field of anthropology. This is irrelevant to the story.