Science Journalism: An Introduction

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Science Journalism: An Introduction

File:Science Journalism An Introduction.jpg
Author	Martin W. Angler
Illustrator
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre	Non-fiction book
Published	2017
Publisher	Routledge
Publication date	June 17, 2017
Pages	347
ISBN	9781138945500 Search this book on .

Science Journalism: An Introduction is a non-fiction book written by science journalist Martin W. Angler and published in 2017 by Routledge.

Synopsis

"Science Journalism: An Introduction" includes twelve chapters that cover the whole production process in science journalism. It starts with an overview of science journalists' role in society and the challenges they currently face, such as layoffs, budget cuts and a lack of critical reporting. This digression is followed by chapters dedicated to sourcing ideas from reliable sources, turning broad topics into story ideas and pitching them to editors. Chapters on writing different formats for newspapers, magazines and online complete the first half of the book. One aspect that defines the book is that it draws both on scholarly sources and interviews with practitioners. It also includes real-life examples and step-by-step analyses that highlight the theoretical concepts. The second half of the book covers storytelling techniques, interpreting statistics (with the support of the Royal Statistical Society), investigative science journalism techniques (largely based on Mark Lee Hunter's "story-based inquiry" method.). The final two chapters cover digital science journalism (including science blogging, its planning and analysis) and pathways into science journalism. The appendix features an analysis of an interview with physicist Kip Thorne and completes the chapter on interviewing techniques.

The book is used to teach science journalism courses at universities in the UK, the US, Qatar and the Netherlands.

Health journalism lecturer An Nguyen of Bournemouth University reviews the books as follows: "Finally, a comprehensive first-of-its-kind text on the essential tools and techniques of science journalism. Long awaited and lucidly written from a clear professional vantage point, Martin W. Angler’s book is a defiant rise up to those who believe in the gradual death of well-crafted science journalism."

Reviews and Critical Reception

Stevens wrote that one of the book's specialties is that it draws both on professional experts and scholars "to provide an authoritative and comprehensive guide to the specialist field of science journalism.

In his review in The Journal of Science Communication, science communication lecturer and practising journalist Andy Ridgway writes: "Almost exclusively practical in focus, Angler’s book describes all the key processes of science journalism; from generating ideas for articles (and the crucial difference between coming up with a broad ‘topic’ and a real story), how to do your research, how to choose and structure the words you write and how to create a multimedia package; there's even guidance for the 21st century writer on how to shoot video material."

Health communication professor Roma Subramanian writes that the practical aspects, especially the chapter on pitching are the book's forte: "I found Chapter 3 to be particularly strong—it provides a thorough look at the craft of pitching stories. The chapter begins with a useful definition of what a pitch is: “an expose that sums up your idea, provides background and shows how you want to structure and approach the article” (p. 56). The author explains that the pitch is an opportunity to grab the editor’s attention with your story idea; to explain to the editor why you are uniquely positioned to tell this story; and to showcase a clear and engaging writing style. Examples of pitches, a template for how to structure a pitch, a section on common pitching mistakes, and a pitch checklist help the reader translate these guidelines into practice." At the same time, she notes that despite being named "introduction", readers are expected to have a certain understanding of journalistic techniques.

In her review for SciCom NL and "De Leesclub van Alles", science journalist Marianne Heselmans points out the myriad of practical techniques presented to the readers, which includes narrative and storytelling techniques: "[Angler] devotes an entire chapter to narrative techniques to bring emotion into a story. You can do this by focusing on a conflict, suddenly raising something problematic, or by taking a frustrating search as the leitmotiv (is this going to end well, the reader must keep thinking). Another technique discussed is the use of colorful images. Why not even describe a cell as a 'fried egg under a microscope'?"

Science communication lecturer Susanna Hornig Priest writes in her overview of new science journalism books in 2018, that the reviewed books, including "Science Journalism: An Introduction" caught the editorial team's attention. Hornig Priest, too, points out its practical value: "While the focus is largely on concrete skills used in writing and storytelling about science, the approach seems both thoughtful and critical. The book also includes material about academically rich topics such as the scientific method, the history and nature of the field, and investigative science journalism."

Pouria Nazemi and David Secko of Concordia University write in their review of the book that one important aspect that it addresses is the ethics of science journalism, a topic which all three reviewed books to some extent approach. They also praise the applicability of the techniques presented in the book and point out that the author "includes interviews with science journalists and lots of case studies and, by doing so, manages a fresh collection of additional voices that present a glimpse of science journalism as a diverse ecosystem of approaches and ideologies." At the same time, Nazemi and Secko note that the overall positivistic interpretation prevails in the book and is supported as such by an according selection of scholarly references. Nevertheless, the book also engages in critical debates like the limitations of storytelling.

In 2021, BookAuthority mentioned "Science Journalism: An Introduction" as one of "100 Best Journalism Books of All Time" as well as the "100 Best Journalism eBooks of All Time"

See also

• Science journalism

References

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