Incentives and Impediments to Scientists Communicating Through the Media

Abstract

This article examines the factors that encourage or discourage scientists to communicate their work through the media. A survey of Australian scientists found that they believed that media coverage of their work had significant benefits but that their research organizations offered them little support and often greeted their efforts with indifference. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the position is not very different in other countries. This study discusses a number of implications for managers of publicly funded research institutions and indicates changes they may consider to both the practices and the culture of their organizations.

Strategies to promote science communication: organisation and evaluation of a workshop to improve the communication between Portuguese researchers, the media and the public

“…Scientists are generally fearful or suspicious of dealing with the media, especially if they have had little experience. They see journalists as inaccurate, not objective and antiscientific (Peters, 1995), and are particularly afraid of misrepresentation, inaccuracy, and loss of control Gascoigne & Metcalfe, 1997). It is very common that journalists and scientists are not happy with the final product of that experience: journalists claim that scientists do not make an effort to explain science and scientists are unhappy with the oversimplification or overstatement treatment that their research is given Gascoigne & Metcalfe, 1997).…”

“…They see journalists as inaccurate, not objective and antiscientific (Peters, 1995), and are particularly afraid of misrepresentation, inaccuracy, and loss of control Gascoigne & Metcalfe, 1997). It is very common that journalists and scientists are not happy with the final product of that experience: journalists claim that scientists do not make an effort to explain science and scientists are unhappy with the oversimplification or overstatement treatment that their research is given Gascoigne & Metcalfe, 1997). There are several barriers towards the popularisation of science in the mass media by the scientific community: first, the scientific community may penalize members who do so; secondly, this communication has very different norms from those governing scientific publication (Dunwoody, 1985).…”

Change!: Combining Analytic Approaches with Street Wisdom

“…These include confidence in talking to the media (Poliakoff and Webb 2007), the reaction of colleagues (Gascoigne and Metcalfe 1997), and concerns about the accuracy of reporting (Peters 1995). However, until we began our work examining leading public health researchers, there had been little research on why and how such researchers engage in public discussion of their research and policy and the strategies they use to overcome these barriers and challenges.…”

“…Previous studies on how scientists communicate with the media have focused on understanding factors associated with this engagement, particularly challenges and barriers (Dunwoody and Ryan 1985, Peters 1995, Gascoigne and Metcalfe 1997, Poliakoff and Webb 2007, Besley and Nisbet 2011. These include confidence in talking to the media (Poliakoff and Webb 2007), the reaction of colleagues (Gascoigne and Metcalfe 1997), and concerns about the accuracy of reporting (Peters 1995).…”

“…Nevertheless, many researchers engage often and effectively with the media, believing media coverage of their work has significant benefits (Gascoigne andMetcalfe 1997, Gething 2003). Independent health experts are the sources most trusted by journalists covering health issues (Leask et al 2010); experts are the second most frequent category of news actor in Australian television health news stories, after those experiencing health problems (Chapman et al 2009).…”