Back To understand science & scientists better
D. Murali
"Do you understand science?" This may well be the first question a science journalist faces when meeting his primary source of news, the scientist. Why so? Because, "Most scientists don't trust journalists. So you have to establish your credibility," advises Genes are Gems: Reporting Agri-Biotechnology, by Rex L. Navarro, S. Gopikrishna Warrier and Crispin C. Maslog. The `sourcebook for journalists' has been published by ICRISAT (the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) and ISAAA (the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications).
The essential subtext of the scientist's question we started off with is, `Should I be wasting my time with you?' You need to agree that agri scientists may spend hours on plant but have no time for useless talk, counsels the well-written slim volume. In these circumstances, a good enough answer for the journalist can be to say, `without batting an eyelash': `I understand enough science for this story.'
Be ready then for the next question from the scientist: "I will send you my latest papers. Why don't you read them and come back to me?" Not a bad idea, suggests the book. "Science journalism is more demanding than general journalism." Therefore, `read all the appropriate material'.
Don't be afraid to be child-like, urge the authors. "Curious. Interested. Frequently ask, why? Maintain eye contact all the time. Don't be shy to ask the dumb question, if you really do not understand what the scientist is saying." When the scientist says something complicated, or resorts to jargon, you can stop him and ask for an explanation, says the book. That doesn't mean, however, you can ask what GM food means, if you are interviewing a genetic scientist!
Another tip for writing science stories is to use analogies, `to associate the often invisible, remote, and unknown experiences of scientific research with a common, human experience'. For example, you may say that `transcriptional repressors of genes' are like `dimmer switches on lights'. Bright idea, as long as you can connect.
Yet another tip advises wannabe sci-reporters to show the magnitude of the problem.
Here is an example of how a local story on the impact of rats on harvests in Thailand can gain global readership: "The World Health Organisation estimates that one rat can eat about 27 pounds of warehouse food and deposit about 25,000 droppings to spoil more. More than 4 billion rats (about 1 billion in Asia) now inhabit the world and they destroy more than 33 million tonnes of stored grain each year."
Read on: "In Asia, they destroy about one-third of the food produced yearly. Besides, they carry some 30 communicable diseases... are a fire hazard... and are as much danger in cities as on farms. Some 4.5 million rats scampering all over Bangkok give the city a one rat per person ratio. (Amor et al. 1987)"
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