The document discusses the changing landscape of science journalism in the digital age. It notes the rise of an extensive science news "ecosystem" that includes legacy media sources, science blogs, advocacy blogs, and social media users. Science journalists now play a variety of roles like conduits, public intellectuals, agenda-setters, watchdogs, and investigators. They also face pressures of adapting to online and social media while filling diverse roles as the news industry changes. The digital age brings challenges around reaching different audiences and ensuring high-quality science information.

1. Science News in Digital Age
Lecture 7 – Paige Brown
#SciCommLSU Paige Brown, Zeynep Altinay

2. http://www.nasa.gov/ http://www.nytimes.com/pages/science/

3. Rise of a science news “ecosystem”
• Legacy media in print and online formats that cover
science: Guardian, New York Times
• Science blogging sites: Scienceblogs.com, Nature blogs,
SciLogs.com, Scientific American blogs, Discover blogs,
PLOS blogs, Wired.com blogs, Popular Science blogs,
NatGeo blogs, etc.
• Ideologically-driven advocacy blogs: Pharyngula, Climate
Progress, Climate Depot
• Meta-discussions about science journalism: MIT’s Knight
Science Journalism Tracker, Colombia Journalism Review,
etc.
• Users who share science news via social media, who
decide what is ‘worth’ sharing, what will go ‘viral’, etc.

4. Rise of a science news “ecosystem”
“The new ecosystem will be richer, more diverse and
immeasurably more complex because of the number
of content producers, the density of the interactions
between them and their products, the speed with
which actors in this space can communicate with one
another and the pace of development made possible
by ubiquitous networking.”
http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

5. “Science journalists in the US and UK face unique
pressures adapting to the social and participatory
nature of online news, to economic conditions that
force them to fill a diversity of roles in the
newsroom, and to the many hats they must wear if
they are to survive as freelancers.”
http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

6. A New Typology of Roles for Science
Journalists
The conduit explains or translates scientific information in their
reporting from experts to non-specialist publics.
The public intellectual synthesizes a range of complex
information about science and its social implications – in which
the writer has a degree of specialization – presenting that
information from a distinct, identifiable perspective.
The agenda-setter identifies and calls attention to important
areas of research, trends and issues, coverage of which is then
picked up and reflected in other science news outlets.
The watchdog holds scientists, scientific institutions, industry
and policy-orientated organizations to scrutiny.
The investigative reporter carries out in-depth journalistic
investigations into scientific topics, especially where science
meets public affairs.
http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

7. A New Typology of Roles for Science
Journalists
The civic educator informs non-specialist audiences about the
methods, aims, limits and risks of scientific work.
The curator gathers science-related news, opinion and
commentary, presenting it in a structured format, with some
evaluation, for audiences.
The convener connects and brings together scientists and
various non-specialist publics to discuss science-related issues
in public, either online or physically.
The advocate reports and writes driven by a specific worldview
or on behalf of an issue or idea, such as sustainability or
environmentalism.
http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

8. The environmental reporter today is
often an agenda-setter / convener
Conveners: Science reporters connect scientists with
various publics to discuss science.
Andrew Revkin, author of Dot Earth blog:
“A big subset of posts that I do are along those lines. When I
go places to speak, quite often I’ll be in the role of moderator
or kind of convener … where I am on stage with four or five
scientists or technologies or engineers or academics and
challenging them in the same way as I do on the blog.”
“what I do at Dot Earth is try to maintain an open forum where
everyone can speak.”
http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

9. Exercise – 20 minutes
1.Pick a (environmental) blogger from
Wired.com, Scientific American or
SciLogs.com
2.Read 1-3 of their recent blog posts,
depending on length
3.Decide what role they are filling: Conduit?
Public Intellectual? Agenda-setter?
Watchdog? Investigative reporter? Civic
educator? Curator? Convener? Advocate?
4.Defend your answer to the class

10. A more critical eye
“Science writers should open up the process of science
in their reports … examining how a piece of research
came to be undertaken and how it fits into the larger
history and current debates about a field.”
http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/skeptical_of_science.php

11. New trends in science journalism
• The traditional historical role of the journalist as
privileged disseminator of scientific information has
been undercut by emergence a new science media.
• Science journals, research institutions, and scientists
themselves (via social media, for example) are producing
content directly for non-specialist audiences
Science news stories written by scientists Reworked science press releases
http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/skeptical_of_science.php

12. New trends in science journalism
• Multiplication of digital science news sites and
science blogs as newspapers downsize/eliminate
science sections
• What does this mean? Potentially MORE science
news and information online, but also more
fragmented audiences.
• Concerns over whether segmented/fragmented
science news only reaches those who were already
interested/engaged with science or a given scientific
issue.

13. New trends in science journalism
• “The traditional ‘scoop’ culture of journalism is being
supplemented by other forms of journalistic
authority: “knowing more, knowing better, knowing
more comprehensively and knowing in as much
depth or extent as readers would wish” (Donald
Matheson).
• “Science journalists need to provide expert interpretation of
scientific knowledge, operating similarly to art critics as they
evaluate — rather than just describe — scientific findings.”
• Rise of a more opinion-based, interpretative type of
reporting.  Science Blogs
http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/skeptical_of_science.php

14. New trends in science journalism
• The rise of the science freelancer, following
economic changes in the news industry: journalism,
teaching, running science events, writing books, etc.
• Rising attention paid to the individual
writer/journalist/blogger, as opposed to the outlet
• Trends toward alternative / non-profit models of science
journalism
http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/skeptical_of_science.php

15. “A science journalist wears a lot of hats, the way I
do… I write books, I do magazine articles, I teach -
[this] is much more the 21st century version of a
journalist.” – Deborah Blum

16. New trends in science journalism
Use of multimedia to communicate and explain
complex concepts
• Interactive graphics of sea level rise
• Science videos / podcasts
• Interactive charts, graphs, etc.
• Compelling visuals
• Video is a growing component of science
communication

17. • “Science reporting has tended to conform to a
transmission communication model in which
information was relayed faithfully ‘from privileged
sources to diverse publics.’”
• Digital age of science reporting characterized by:
• Self-publishing online via blogs, social media, etc.
• Scientists increasingly communicating directly with public
• Drastic expansion of science-related information online (and
more people going online to get their science news)
• Broader access to science, even science journal papers
• More science communication from societies, scientific
publishers, science centers and museums, interest groups
• Sometimes minimally edited / vetted stories - more
information also means more bad information.
Http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

18. New Possibilities
• Today, science-interested users can “deep dive” into news
about climate change, evolution, stem cells, etc. online
• “These ‘science publics’ consume, contribute, recommend,
share, and comment on news and discussion of their preferred
topics across media and platforms. They expect high standards
and quality for content, and they expect that content be
interactive and responsive to their feedback, reposting,
forwarding, or commenting.”
• BUT also risk of ‘echo chamber’ consumption of science news
that aligns with one’s predispositions
Http://climateshiftproject.org/2011/09/28/the-science-journalist-online-shifting-roles-and-emerging-practices/

19. Digital age science news challenges
• How do you reach non-science-interested audience with high
quality science or environmental news?
• How do you ensure high quality information in a science news
ecosystem where stories (on blogs, social media) are often
“published first, checked later”?
• How do you avoid playing into ‘echo chambers’ of like-minded
individuals?
• How do you truly engage users in science / environmental
issues?
• How do you find the resources to do deep-dive investigative
journalism?
• How do you avoid false balance? Find appropriate experts?
Correct misinformation?

20. Exercise – 30 minutes
If you were going to devise an environmental science news
website for the digital age, what would it look like? What
kind of information would it have? What roles would the
content producers play? How would you make it different
from current environmental science news outlets? Who
would produce the content? How would you involve
audiences?
Pair up and ‘design’ your website. You can look online
for ideas. Sketch the website and the main principles of
content, style, approach, user-input, etc. Base the
principles on what you’ve learned about environmental
issues, environmental communication, storytelling and
new media possibilities. Post to Moodle (blog if you wish).

21. If Time: Q&A about the future of
science journalism.
Questions?