[TimTheTinker]

Why not:

(1) directly fund studies and reproductions of studies (promising ahead of time to publish the results, even if negative) targeting the exact issues they're concerned about

(2) writing and publishing extensively to show people the results and help them arrive at a correct interpretation of the data

(3) make a public commitment ahead of time to change opinion based on what the data says, and not to overstate underdetermined theses

... instead of spending money trying to control the political narrative?

That would simply be science doing science -- which has always threatened the establishment because it's accountable to reality, not authority.

Science rightly done never claims authority, just reports on what the data says. Truth is powerful enough on its own.