From scientific article to press release to media coverage: advocating alcohol abstinence and democratising risk in a story about alcohol and pregnancy

Abstract

In this article, we follow the approach taken by Riesch and Spiegalhalter in “Careless pork costs lives’: Risk stories from science to press release to media’ published in this journal, and offer an assessment of one example of a ‘risk story’. Using content and thematic qualitative analysis, we consider how the findings of an article ‘Fetal Alcohol Exposure and IQ at Age 8: Evidence from a Population-Based Birth-Cohort Study’ were framed in the article itself, the associated press release, and the subsequent extensive media coverage. We contextualise this consideration of a risk story by discussing a body of work that critically engages with the development and global proliferation of efforts to advocate for alcohol abstinence to pregnant (and pre-pregnant) women. This work considers the ‘democratisation’ of risk, a term used to draw attention to the expansion of the definition of the problem of drinking in pregnancy to include any drinking and all women. We show here how this risk story contributed a new dimension to the democratisation of risk through claims that were made about uncertainty and certainty. A central argument we make concerns the contribution of the researchers themselves (not just lobby groups or journalists) to this outcome. We conclude that the democratisation of risk was advanced in this case not simply through journalists exaggerating and misrepresenting research findings, but that communication to the press and the initial interpretation of findings played their part. We suggest that this risk story raises concerns about the accuracy of reporting of research findings, and about the communication of unwarrantedly worrying messages to pregnant women about drinking alcohol.

Left Out—Feelings of Social Exclusion Incite Individuals with High Conspiracy Mentality to Reject Complex Scientific Messages

“…Instead, scientific findings had been interpreted and reported by journalists and news reporters. In order to raise the readability for the lay public, however, the media agencies had to simplify research findings by reducing some nuance, sometimes at the cost of exaggerating and misrepresenting the findings (Lee et al, 2016). By communicating their findings to the lay public themselves, scientists have the opportunity to summarize their findings as accurately as possible, which can forestall misrepresentations and misinterpretations introduced by intermediaries.…”

Risk messages relating to fertility and pregnancy: a media content analysis

“…Concerns have been raised that the media’s reporting of health science is sensationalist, inaccurate, and undermines the intended messaging of the scientific community 1 , 3 , 7 , 8 . A number of studies have examined the role of PRs in science communication, and found they may be responsible, especially through the removal of caveats or the framing of correlational associations as causative 1 , 2 , 7 – 9 .…”

“…Concerns have been raised that the media’s reporting of health science is sensationalist, inaccurate, and undermines the intended messaging of the scientific community 1 , 3 , 7 , 8 . A number of studies have examined the role of PRs in science communication, and found they may be responsible, especially through the removal of caveats or the framing of correlational associations as causative 1 , 2 , 7 – 9 . While a certain degree of interpretation is necessary for PRs to fulfil their bridging function, such changes in the framing of risk messages at the PR stage are likely to later influence their public interpretation and reception, and therefore risk a detrimental impact on public health 2 , 4 , 10 , 11 .…”

Representing anxious parents in China: A study of Parenting Science magazine 1980–2016

“…The topic of parenthood and parenting has gathered considerable social and academic interests, as an increasing number of parenting practices such as conceiving, breastfeeding, playing and safeguarding, previously deemed private, are now subject to intense public debate (Lupton, 2008;Murray, 2015;Murphy, 2000;Furedi, 2008;Lee et al, 2010;Beck-Gernsheim, 1995). While a wealth of literature researching parenthood, parental practices and parenting culture can be found in Western societies (Oakley, 1980;Apple, 1995;Shirani et al, 2012;Lee et al, 2016;Schmied and Lupton, 2001;Lee et al, 2010;Thomson et al, 2011;Murphy, 2000;Furedi, 2008;Knaak, 2010;Hays, 1996;Crighton et al, 2013), little existent literature addresses similar topics in China, a country with a recent history of state-directed modernisation. The modernising processes including individualisation, marketisation and a neoliberal reform of the health care system have reconfigured the 'cultural experience' of individuals (Barker, 2012: 185)…”

“…The topic of parenthood and parenting has gathered considerable social and academic interest, as an increasing number of parenting practices such as conceiving, breastfeeding, playing and safeguarding, previously deemed private, are now subject to intense public debate (Beck-Gernsheim, 1995; Furedi, 2008; Lee et al, 2010; Lupton, 2008; Murphy, 2000; Murray, 2015). While a wealth of literature researching parenthood, parental practices and parenting culture can be found in Western societies (Apple, 1995; Crighton et al, 2013; Furedi, 2008; Hays, 1996; Knaak, 2010; Lee et al, 2010, 2016; Murphy, 2000; Oakley, 1980; Schmied and Lupton, 2001; Shirani et al, 2012; Thomson et al, 2011), little existing literature addresses similar topics in China, a country with a recent history of state-directed modernisation. The modernising processes - including individualisation, marketisation and a neoliberal reform of the healthcare system - have reconfigured the ‘cultural experience’ of individuals (Barker, 2012: 185), such as parents shifting their childrearing activities towards a modern, self-managed set of practices based on individual family resources (Binah-Pollak, 2014; Davis and Sensenbrenner, 2000; Gong, 2016).…”