Comments on: Thoughts on science and context http://www.newsless.org/2008/11/thoughts-on-science-and-context/ Time to stop breaking the news, and start fixing it.* Sat, 13 Mar 2010 19:20:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Sam Shepherd http://www.newsless.org/2008/11/thoughts-on-science-and-context/comment-page-1/#comment-154 Sam Shepherd Tue, 04 Nov 2008 10:18:50 +0000 http://www.newsless.org/?p=167#comment-154 Ben Goldacre says it better than I ever could: http://www.badscience.net/?p=172 Science stories are used as the 'funnies' because reporters choose to ignore or are too stupid to notice that the press release under their nose has been engineered to get a 'chocolare doesn't make you fat' headline or a 'apples can cure cancer' None of this does us any good - but reporting science is a definite skill. It requires a Dawkins-like ability to explain complicated facts in a clear, concise and accurate way. Science graduates are needed to make good science reporters. Ben Goldacre says it better than I ever could: http://www.badscience.net/?p=172

Science stories are used as the ‘funnies’ because reporters choose to ignore or are too stupid to notice that the press release under their nose has been engineered to get a ‘chocolare doesn’t make you fat’ headline or a ‘apples can cure cancer’
None of this does us any good – but reporting science is a definite skill. It requires a Dawkins-like ability to explain complicated facts in a clear, concise and accurate way.
Science graduates are needed to make good science reporters.

]]> By: Newsmaven http://www.newsless.org/2008/11/thoughts-on-science-and-context/comment-page-1/#comment-153 Newsmaven Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:28:16 +0000 http://www.newsless.org/?p=167#comment-153 Let's start by hiring some reporters who can understand science. The paper where I spent most of my career made a point of not hiring many journalism or "communications" majors, preferring people with a mix of backgrounds and a wide range of interests, as long as they could write. Still, these reporters were pretty much like reporters anywhere in that they couldn't do math to save their life ("I need to figure out this percentage—do I divide this number into that one, or the other way around?"). So basically, a science story on the horizon would have them heading in the opposite direction, since it might involve math, chemistry, physics, or something of that ilk. Perhaps our (fingers crossed) next President can take a step in the right direction by revitalizing the office of the President's science advisor. Let’s start by hiring some reporters who can understand science. The paper where I spent most of my career made a point of not hiring many journalism or “communications” majors, preferring people with a mix of backgrounds and a wide range of interests, as long as they could write. Still, these reporters were pretty much like reporters anywhere in that they couldn’t do math to save their life (“I need to figure out this percentage—do I divide this number into that one, or the other way around?”). So basically, a science story on the horizon would have them heading in the opposite direction, since it might involve math, chemistry, physics, or something of that ilk. Perhaps our (fingers crossed) next President can take a step in the right direction by revitalizing the office of the President’s science advisor.

]]> By: Tim http://www.newsless.org/2008/11/thoughts-on-science-and-context/comment-page-1/#comment-152 Tim Tue, 04 Nov 2008 01:10:35 +0000 http://www.newsless.org/?p=167#comment-152 A couple of things. You haven't yet dug into the big question of how journalists are educated and trained before they get down to business. How does that impact what's being done? How does the changing mediascape change that education? Speaking of teachable moments -- teacher education is often far from ideal, but it does present an alternative model of training in a specific discipline + specific training in teaching. A couple of things.

You haven’t yet dug into the big question of how journalists are educated and trained before they get down to business. How does that impact what’s being done? How does the changing mediascape change that education?

Speaking of teachable moments — teacher education is often far from ideal, but it does present an alternative model of training in a specific discipline + specific training in teaching.

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