From the lab to the media: Scientist and journalist relations are strengthening, study finds.
Scientific researchers are starting to move out of the lab and into the media, as more researchers are recognizing the importance of public education and cooperation with the media.
Scientists are typically not given formal trained on communicating with those outside of academia. This often makes them hesitant to speak about their work outside of their inner circle, which only makes up less than 1% of the total global population. This sharing comes in the form of dense research publications for scientific journals. But in order to get their research to the other 99% of the population, scientists must join forces with journalists and other trained science communication experts.
While it may sound problematic, a recent study has reported that the willingness for scientist and journalist collaboration is stronger than ever. Moreover, scientists reported feeling as though they can converse and become involved in the media, creating more of a collaborative environment.
“It’s heartening to see that the two groups recognize that they are often aiming for the same goal,” said Dr. Laura Moorhead, a former journalist and current researcher at San Francisco State University.
Historically, there has been a tension between scientists and journalists. Although they have always worked towards a common goal of spreading the truth, the two groups have had a difficult time understanding each other’s professional practices.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the media was flooded with a mixture of facts and misinformation, which increased public distrust in science and media reports. Now, scientists and journalists are working harder than ever to regain public trust in science and promote scientific knowledge.
A lot of scientists in the study had recalled personal revelations during the pandemic, deciding that they needed to find an outlet to get their research to the public, regardless of if it was COVID-19 related or not.
Through a series of interviews, Moorhead and her team identified scientists’ familiarity with the logic used in the media, and how they understood the need to explain science in a simple, straightforward fashion. Scientists are also beginning to use media logic, which is a skill used by journalists to share factual knowledge in an engaging manner.
This qualitative study interviewed 19 scientists, which Moorhead said that was enough to hit saturation — meaning that the results of those interviewed was enough to draw the necessary conclusions, that majority of scientists understood and are willing and even eager to communicate with the media.
Three patterns of understanding media logic were identified, the ability to explain research simply and in an engaging way, actively creating and managing media relations, and an enthusiasm and desire for public outreach and media contributions — which the researchers noted as a new pattern found in this study. The eagerness to collaborate with and trust journalists to accurately cover stories has the potential to increase science coverage in news outlets and reach more target audiences.
“It’s rare for me to talk to a journalist who doesn’t show a very intelligent understanding of the field. They’ve done their homework,” said one of the scientists interviewed for the study. “If they’re confused about something after the interview, they call me back and get clarification about something.”
This clarification and attention to detail by journalists was also noted in an earlier study Moorhead and her team also conducted, that discussed the scrutiny of which journalists take to writing stories about unreviewed research papers. By understanding the methodology behind science journalism, scientists have become more likely to collaborate with the media and share their research with the public.
Moorhead also noted the difficultly of acquiring journalists and scientists who are willing to be interviewed. The hesitancy of participation in these studies makes it difficult to truly understand the full spectrum of the relationship across career stages, fields of study and academic affiliation, said Moorhead.
Ultimately, the team plans to expand this work even further and hopes to work with more scientists and journalists to understand how this unique collaboration impacts public knowledge on a both a qualitative and quantitative level.
“The biggest takeaway is the potential for scientists and journalists to share knowledge in a public space,” Moorhead said. “Now this historically cautious relationship is working together which is great, because there is so much fact-based information sharing that needs to happen.”
