True, very pertinent point. Scientists just like most who can get corrupted, are very much a part of the economic system & imcentives that currently drive the world. They depend on funding outside of university, and the source of funding will influence them. If its a private university, then it is probably worse. More funding means more research and hence more rewards and progression in the academic space. And every kind of research is impacted by this, whether it is psychology, literature or food & agricultural sciences. The outcome will be influenced by the probability of future funding.

However, it is still better to believe a scientist because, at least the outcome will be backed by some research, as misleading as it may be. We are living in times when people blindly trust journalists, opinionists and worse, youtube artists.