Articles

  • Nov 18 2006

    Laura Van Dam Travel Fellowship

    The National Association of Science Writers invites all interested members to apply for a Laura Van Dam Travel Fellowship to this spring's meeting of the World Federation of Science Journalists in Melbourne, Australia.

  • Nov 13 2006

    Listserv Policies Subcommittee

    Would you like to volunteer your time as a member of the Listserv Policies Subcommittee? The subcommittee will report back to the NASW president in one month with recommendations.

  • Nov 6 2006

    New media technologies for science writers

    By Melissa Lee Phillips

    Starting a science Web log probably won't finance your retirement, but it could boost your career in other ways, said Chris Mooney, Washington correspondent for Seed magazine and senior correspondent for The American Prospect. Mooney's comments were part of a panel at NASW's "Navigating the New Media" session.

  • Nov 5 2006

    Time to Vote in the NASW Elections

    NASW members can read the statements of candidates running for office or a seat on the board of directors of the National Association of Science Writers. Officers and board members serve a term of two years, starting January 2007. Members should have received ballots in the mail; they are due Nov. 30.

  • Nov 5 2006

    NASW Board Election Candidate Statements

    See the statements of candidates running for office or a seat on the board of directors of the National Association of Science Writers; statements also appeared in the summer issue of ScienceWriters. Officers and board members serve a term of two years, starting January 2007. Members should have received the ballots in the mail. Ballots are due to Diane McGurgan, executive director, by Nov. 30.

  • Nov 4 2006

    NASW Mentoring Program Travel Stipends

    Thanks to a generous grant from the William T. Golden Endowment Fund at AAAS, the NASW Mentoring Program can now offer as many as 10 undergraduate students interested in science journalism up to $1000 in travel expenses to attend the AAAS 2007 meeting in San Francisco from February 15-19, 2007. Details and application.

  • Nov 2 2006

    Conference highlights from Baltimore

    The annual Science in Society meeting of the National Association of Science Writers drew more than 400 science writers to Baltimore, Md., Oct. 27-28, 2006. Reports on many of the sessions have been filed here by NASW conference travel fellows.

  • Nov 1 2006

    Perfecting the Pitch

    By Patrick L. Barry

    It all comes down to the pitch. Whether a story idea lives or dies depends on the writer's ability to pitch it to an editor quickly, clearly, and with pizzazz. At the lively "Pitch Slam" session, writers queued up to pitch their ideas to a high-powered panel of editors, who dissected each pitch like doctors in an operating room theater, providing valuable lessons on the anatomy of a successful pitch for all who attended.

  • Oct 29 2006

    Podcasting 101

    By B. Christine Hoekenga

    "Podcasting is about content," Ivan Semeniuk told the crowd of roughly 100 assembled for the Podcasting 101 session at the 2006 NASW Conference. "But I want to add one more layer to that: it's about identity." Semenuik, the host and producer of New Scientist's "Sci-Pod," and the four other panelists returned repeatedly to the themes of creating identity and grappling with technology as they explained the fundamentals of podcasting — from getting good sound quality for phone-recorded interviews to marketing techniques for recruiting more listeners.

  • Oct 29 2006

    Clinical Trials Boot Camp, Part I

    By Mark Schrope

    During the first Clinical Trials Basic Training session an Food and Drug Administration official and an academic explained the basic standards and issues involved in properly designing a human clinical trial. The goal was to teach reporters enough about the process to adequately analyze trial data and avoid inaccurate coverage of results. To that end, the speakers pointed out some specific questions for reporters to ask and information to request and scrutinize to properly assess trial results.