Science Journalism 'Flourishing' in Developing World

This article communicates a consensus to emerge from the February 2009 American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting: science journalism is thriving in parts of the developing world while coming under severe pressure in some developed countries.

Speakers from Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America were optimistic about a surge of interest in science and science journalism in their countries, citing a greater demand for stories about science from both the public and newspaper editors. In response, associations of science journalists are being formed in "quite a number" of African countries, with members organising conferences to influence national science policy. The Arab Science Journalists Association reports that an informal survey of 40 African and Arab science journalists completed in early February 2009 found that many perceived an increase in space allocated to science stories in the last 5 years.

In contrast, in the United States (US), "the number of science journalists on the staff of newspapers has dropped sharply and some respected outlets have axed their science departments....The US television network CNN recently closed its entire environmental, science and technology unit and the Boston Globe's once distinguished science section is gradually being eliminated....The number of dedicated science sections in newspapers fell from about 95 to 34 between 1989 and 2005, according to the US National Association of Science Writers."

Reasons for these patterns cited in the article include: efforts by the developed world to train and mentor developing world journalists, more international attention on issues such as global warming, and a new interest on behalf of media organisations in promoting science as a means of development - one theme to be explored at the February 2009 African Science Communication Conference.