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AGU Media ContactsA Crash Course in Science Radio Reporting
Eos, Vol. 90, No. 8, 24 February 2009
Erika Schielke, AGU Mass Media Fellow 2009
This past summer, 5 weeks after defending my doctoral dissertation, I traded my lab bench and field sampling gear for a radio reporter's recorder and a microphone, and I headed west. As a graduate student at Yale University in New Haven, Conn., I had seen great science going on all around me, but the public was unaware of most of it. Having dabbled in science writing while finishing my Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology, I was looking for ways to gain more experience in science communication and even had been considering pursuing a career in science reporting.
Then a remarkable opportunity opened up that took me to Greeley, Colo., covering science stories at KUNC, a National Public Radio affiliate, for 10 weeks this past summer.
I had been accepted into a special program that offered me everything I was hoping for: With AGU's sponsorship, I participated in the American Association for the Advancement of Science's (AAAS) Mass Media Science and Engineering Fellows Program.
The program offers science graduate students the opportunity to work as science reporters at media outlets including magazines, newspapers, and radio stations such as KUNC. The goal is not to lure us away from research and teaching careers (although some fellows have gone that route) but to give scientists the tools to explain science to the public.
The fellowship was indeed a crash course in journalism. During a 3-day orientation for fellows at AAAS headquarters in Washington, D.C., I got some grounding in basic journalism (how to write a catchy introduction, how to find story ideas, and so forth).
When I showed up at KUNC, I had no idea how to use a recorder, a microphone, or the editing software to piece together a radio story, but I learned quickly. On my first day, I started writing, and I produced a “tape and copy” news spot (audio clip from an interview plus text) for the news program host to read on air. A few days later, I produced my own “wrap” during which I read text and melded it with an audio clip. It was exciting to hear myself on the radio for the first time. After that, I moved on to reporting feature stories and daily news spots.
Despite my inexperience, the news director treated me pretty much like any other reporter. I was able to do daily spots, super spots (1.5 minutes instead of typical minute- long dailies), and features (4 minutes).
The most exciting aspect of reporting was the breadth of stories I covered on topics ranging from alternative energy to genetic testing. That aspect of my fellowship, along with talking to many different researchers about their latest findings—which, even prior to the fellowship, had been one of my favorite parts of science—made me better informed and more up to date regarding advances across the sciences than I was when working on my dissertation.
As a result of those 10 rewarding weeks in Greeley, I now have a much clearer understanding of how to communicate complex stories to the public. The biggest lesson I learned was that I cannot provide all of the details in a story. Sometimes I cannot even hit all of the main points. Rather, it is essential to find one or two key ideas and present them clearly and concisely.
I also learned that even serious science stories can have an element of fun. For a story about genetic testing and sports, for example, I revealed some of my less-than- successful childhood sports endeavors and included an interview with my parents. By poking some lighthearted fun at myself, I drew readers into that story about complex issues of genetic variation and the ethics of genetic testing of children. Positive feedback on that story confirmed the value of drawing in the listener with an entertaining anecdote and showing that scientific issues can have personal relevance.
I came to this fellowship believing that communicating science to the public is incredibly important—science touches most aspects of our daily lives, from climate change to health. I returned home with a strong understanding of how to do that type of reporting.
I got exactly what I had hoped for from my summer at KUNC: the chance to see what the daily life of a reporter is like. I discovered that I love the fast-paced exposure to many different areas of research, and I have begun producing a biweekly science radio series at Adirondack Community College in Queensbury, N.Y., where I am currently teaching. I plan to pursue other freelance opportunities in science communications, and I am even keeping an eye open for a full-time position as a science reporter.
—Erika Schielke, Adjunct Instructor, Adirondack Community College, Queensbury, N. Y.;
E-mail: Erika.schielke@gmail.com