✍️Science Writing News Roundup #219

9 local story ideas from the 2024 Lancet Countdown report on climate change and health.

Dec 04, 2024

Awards lunch celebrates prize winners at ScienceWriters2024. The convention center ballroom was abuzz with the clang of forks and knives as science writers congratulated their colleagues on awards presented by the National Association of Science Writers (NASW) and the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing (CASW) at the ScienceWriters2024 national conference in Raleigh, N.C. (Photo by Megan Mendenhall for CASW/NASW)

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🔭News

ASJA’s 2024 Annual Writing Award Winners: Congratulations to the 2024 Annual Writing Award Winners. Freelancer Cheryl Katz won for her Smithsonian Magazine story about the crashing population of the world's largest puffin colony, and an Icelandic town's efforts to save it.
New initiative launches to protect climate journalists worldwide: Attacks against environmental journalists are at an all-time high and continue to worsen, according to a report by UNESCO. In September, the Committee to Protect Journalists announced a $1 million Climate Crisis Journalist Protection Initiative to help address this rise in violence.
Congratulations to Jennifer Huber, winner of the 2024 NASW Diane McGurgan Service Award. This year, the National Association of Science Writers awarded its annual Diane McGurgan Service Award to NASW member Jennifer Huber. NASW president Sandeep Ravindran announced the honors at the annual NASW Membership Meeting, held online on Nov. 20.

🖥️Resources

9 local story ideas from the 2024 Lancet Countdown report on climate change and health: Climate change is often framed as a global crisis, but its impacts are local. Journalists can inform their audiences by localizing climate change stories, making abstract climate data more tangible.
Landing the story: Tips for PIOs working with journalists. Technology and digitization have transformed the journalism industry over the past few decades, fueling a 24-hour news cycle and new methods of engagement. Science journalists no longer depend on public information officers (PIOs) to access source contacts or research articles. In turn, PIOs have shifted their approach to pitching stories.
How to best pitch for broadcast content in the UK and Germany: A discussion at UKCSJ24 about the differing broadcast landscapes led to some practical advice for science journalists.
First-time authors share challenges and lessons in writing a book: SciWri24 travel grantee Vagner de Alencar reports on "The Bookmaking Journey in Three Acts: A Guide for Debut Authors" NASW virtual workshop session organized by Ferris Jabr.

🎧Videos

🖼️Articles

The Atlantic’s Sarah Zhang on covering the science and emotion of being human. “I’ve always liked to think of myself as a brain floating through space…[but] our physical condition constrains and expands the way we think about ourselves.”
Jane Zhang on covering China’s tech beat for a global audience: The Knight Science Journalism Fellow discusses the challenges and opportunities of reporting during a "golden time to write about the U.S., China, and tech."
Covering Science in the Context of Conflict: To find and tell science stories from regions in turmoil, international and local journalists alike have to dig for unique angles, gather and verify context about conflicts, track down and protect sources, and, above all, stay safe in areas where journalists might be targets of violence.
I never wanted to leave academia, but now I love being a freelance science writer: No such thing as a standard career path – an interview with Bill Hinchen.
AI-generated slop is quietly conquering the internet. Is it a threat to journalism or a problem that will fix itself? Three experts discuss the rise of low-quality content and its implications for the profession, the news industry and the public sphere.

📣Opportunities

Dreaming a Better World Through Science Journalism and Poetry: Ode to Healthy Futures invites you to make connections to the science that shapes our lives, and to share your vision for a healthy future.
More opportunities and calls for pitches👉Bonus content for monthly supporters.

🌏Events

Down to Earth: The Challenge of Reporting the Environment (December 5, 2024)
More events👉Bonus content for monthly supporters.

📱Jobs

Bonus content for monthly supporters.

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