“Editors are desperate people,” Josh Fischman, editor at Scientific American, told a standing-room-only audience. Publications need to be filled with ideas and editors need people who can write those ideas. Once an editor is excited about your story idea, the trick for the freelancer is to keep that excitement going, he explained. Fischman, along with editors Cori Vanchieri of Science News, Gideon Gil of STAT, and Alexandra Witze, correspondent for Nature and Science News attempted to illuminate for writers just how to do that.
Oct. 31, 2016NASW news
When science journalist Gary Taubes speaks publicly about nutrition and weight loss, he’s wary of mentioning carbohydrates too early in the presentation, especially when he knows there are physicians in the audience. He doesn’t want to be dismissed as “one of those Atkins people.” This is a problem many science writers face. How do you clearly communicate where the evidence lies without coming off as biased, turning off many readers?
Oct. 31, 2016The impetus of this session was the relative lack of Black, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian science journalists. The organizer and moderator, Alberto I. Roca, executive director of DiverseScholar, acknowledged that although there are many other types of diversity, this panel chose to focus on race and ethnicity.
Oct. 31, 2016It is somehow enrooted deep in society that disabled people are brave just for doing everyday activities — like attending school, driving or buying groceries — and that they should be praised just for that. This phenomenon is called "inspiration porn" and the reason it exists is in part how the media portrays disability.
Oct. 31, 2016Convening in a chilly air-conditioned ballroom, a panel of four journalists described their experiences writing about the sordid side of science. Organized and moderated by Brooke Borel, a freelance journalist and author, the "Investigative reporting: Uncovering the seedy side of science" session touched on misconduct, harassment, and corruption in science.
Oct. 31, 2016Starry-eyed and determined, only the slightest tinge of desperation in their eyes betrayed mentees to the self-assured and confident mentors at the One Minute Mentor Special Lunch. At three tables of 10, the conversation bubbled and rose into the clangor of a trade floor, mentees excavating mentors’ minds for their experience, advice and encouragement.
Oct. 31, 2016ScienceWriters2016 attendees filled both tables in the sunroom of the Omni La Mansión del Rio dining room that were designated for the lunch discussion on NASW Idea Grants.
Oct. 31, 2016The highly anticipated, and potentially contentious, business meeting at ScienceWriters2016 is over, and members of the NASW — all 2,534 of them — are breathing a collective sigh of relief following a respectful and informative discussion.
Oct. 31, 2016Awards night for the National Association of Science Writers and Council for the Advancement of Science Writing highlighted not only great science writing but the benefits of putting feet to the pavement to find the untold stories.
Oct. 31, 2016