2001 Science in Society Journalism Awards

Web journalism

David Tenenbaum

“Buried Treasure”

The Why Files

Description

Using the excuse of rising gas prices, Why Files writer Dave Tenenbaum followed up on a long-standing interest in the tantalizing potential of methane hydrates, a vast hard-to-tap resource deep in the crust (Oct. 5, 2000). He deftly navigated among points of view ranging from Wall Street demands for profitable new energy sources to scientific concerns about global warming. “Cheap energy is always assumed to be a good thing, but these days you can’t really discuss energy without considering warming,” Tenenbaum said.

Two people shared the Web award, given for the first time this year to support laudable efforts in the new media. Both winners used mostly text to tell complex international stories, in part from a philosophy to reach as many people as possible on potentially slow home modems that make up a large share of the Web audience, whose computers might be stalled by large video, audio and graphic files.

Biography

David Tenenbaum has been a staff writer at The Why Files since 1995. As a freelancer he has covered science, health and environment for publications such as ABCnews.com, Technology Review, BioScience, Environmental Health Perspectives, and American Health. His background includes a fascination with science and technology and the capacity to swing a hammer: In 1996, MacMillan published his book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Trouble-Free Home Repair. He has also worked as a leather bag maker, a farmer, a mason, and a sauerkraut flinger. (Don’t believe him? He invites you to ask him about it.)

At The Why Files, Tenenbaum joins the rest of the four-person staff in selecting stories, and then engaging in backgrounding, interviewing, writing and other duties of a journalist. Tenenbaum says he loves his job because The Why Files covers an incredible variety of stories, and “because my editor, Terry Devitt, is not afraid of my sense of humor.”

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