The future of science journalism is both exciting and perilous. Those wanting to enter the field can follow tradition such as transmitting information through a single platform or reshape how science stories are told. Last summer, graduate students from around the world took part in Projected Futures , an intensive summer school that seeks to rethink how science is communicated with society.
We came up with some key ways to create better science stories — and boost interest and trust in science. Science is not a sterile and infallible creation of computers and gleaming, strange machines. Relish that morning latte! This focus on show-stopping, paradigm-shifting breakthroughs makes it easy to miss the bigger picture.
Tomorrow another research article may detail the cancer-promoting effects of the morning pick-me-up. These dots are too often left unconnected , leaving readers with false hopes, apprehension and confusion about the scientific process. Researchers may feel agitated and irritated or, with luck, exhilaration with an ever-changing body of knowledge. For this reason, a story about science remains unfinished. Journalism needs to embrace the limitations, ambiguity and caveats of its subject, and pull people to the forefront.
Use simple and direct language. Use passive and active voice appropriately. In science writing, it is important to know when to use passive and active voice. Active voice is more natural, direct, and engaging, and should be used when referring to widely accepted findings.
When referring to the findings of a specific study, however, passive voice should be used. In the Methods and Results sections, passive voice should be used to discuss what you did and what you found. In the Discussion section, a mixture of passive and active voice is acceptable, but take care not to mix the two together in a single sentence.
Select the appropriate words. Selecting the appropriate words can be challenging. The best words accurately capture what the author is trying to convey. If a word is not sufficiently precise, use a thesaurus to replace the word or phrase with a more appropriate word. Precise words allow for specific, clear, and accurate expression. While science writing differs from literature in that it does not need to be colorful, it should not be boring. Broaden your vocabulary.
Use clear, specific, and concrete words. Avoid filler words. Filler words are unnecessary words that are vague and meaningless or do not add to the meaning or clarity of the sentence.
All of these phrases can be replaced with more direct and clear language. See our list of words and phrases to avoid here. Read what you write. Make sure to vary sentence length to keep the reader from getting lulled to sleep by a monotonous rhythm. Reading the manuscript yourself after some time away or having someone else read the manuscript will help you to refine the readability.
Optimize paragraph and sentence structure. If a journalist doesn't understand your press release or journal article and can't get you on the phone, they could refer to your blog for detail and FAQs. As successful blogs show, this bridge can be highly valuable.
We've tried this with an expanded version of the current article. Scientists face unrelenting pressure to publish in the most respected journals, placing much science behind paywalls. The ethical concerns this raises, especially for publicly funded science, have been underlined at length see for example here , here , and here.
We can post our articles on our websites but a coordinated move to open access publishing may require changes in government policy. When things go wrong, act. We must take the time to challenge misreporting of our own research and other work in our fields. Many scientists are apathetic about misreporting, either laughing it off or resenting it - but then doing nothing about it. Equally important is to challenge pseudoscience or exaggerated claims in our own fields. Bad science has no better ally than silence from good scientists.
Argument is no substitute for evidence. Most scientists are not experts in journalism studies, but that shouldn't stop us from teaming up with the experts and doing research on how our area of science is represented in the media. We have just embarked on research in our own field to assess the accuracy of press releases and news stories , and the attitudes of scientists toward them.
We would encourage more scientists to do the same. If press releases contained more caveats and limitations, would it reduce their media uptake? Is this necessarily a bad thing? Would journalists welcome clearer statements of limitations and interpretative danger points in press releases? There are scientists who communicate well and are willing to spend the time and effort to make their science widely accessible.
There are also resources like articles, books, and workshops for those interested in learning more. Here are some thoughts I shared with workshop participants on how science communicators and researchers can do their part to bridge the gap. Scientists and communicators alike know that science is underrepresented and often inaccurately portrayed in the media. But journalists can be a great ally, too. Maybe we can use these skills and connections to contribute to a better understanding of science among broader audiences.
Acknowledgements: Thanks to Toni Klemm and Kristen Donahue , my Communicating with the Media co-facilitators, for their input and perspectives and their efforts toward the success of the workshop.
Lindsey Middleton is a Communications Specialist at the North Central Climate Science Center , a regional research organization that focuses on climate drivers, ecological impacts, and adaptation. By Lindsey Middleton Last fall, I set out to organize my first workshop— Communicating with the Media , a one-hour interactive talk for climate science graduate students, post-docs, and early career researchers at a national Climate Science Center CSC training in Amherst, MA.
Students, researchers and NC CSC staff from Colorado and Montana were among about 70 participants who came ready to network, interact, and learn useful skills like communicating with the media. Participants at the workshop get ready to work!
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