Announcing NASW’s new Conflict of Interest resource

We’re pleased to announce a new resource developed by NASW members: Conflicts of Interest: Guidance for Science Writers

It’s not what to think. It’s what to think about. Negotiating conflicts of interest (COI), real or perceived, is an important part of the contemporary science writing landscape for journalists, institutional writers, and other writers, whether they are staff or freelancers.

Built by volunteers, and informed by commentary from more than 50 contributors, this resource aims to inform writers and editors about behaviors or practices that may raise COI concerns and to inform conversations between writers and editors about COI and how to address it in performance or contract negotiations. Its primary use should be to sensitize writers and editors to how broadly COI can be construed by different employers and to guide all involved in the mutual resolution of those concerns.

We invite you to peruse this rich resource at nasw.org/COI. We hope that you will find it useful both as an overview and as a reference for your own work now and in the future.

Thanks to the COI Working Group, led by Jill Adams and Bryn Nelson, for their dedication to this large, multi-year project: Rick Borchelt, Lila Guterman, Alla Katsnelson, Katie Mast, Anne McGovern, Emily Moskal, and Cassandra Willyard.

Additional thanks to Tom Abate, Caesar Andrews, Aleszu Bajak, Jacqui Banaszynski, Brooke Borel, Jeff Bounds, Rebecca Boyle, Erika Check Hayden, Rachel Crowell, Cornelia Dean, Francie Diep, Eva Emerson, Dan Fagin, Maggie Fox, Robert Frederick, Barbara Gastel, Wayt Gibbs, Terri Hansen, Cassie Haynes, Laura Helmuth, Hannah Hoag, Robert Lee Hotz, Cheryl Katz, Jane Kirtley, Roberta Kwok, Esther Landhuis, Brendan Maher, Apoorva Mandavilli, Amanda Mascarelli, Madeline McCurry Schmidt, Seth Mnookin, Michelle Nijhuis, Ivan Oransky, Rodrigo Pérez Ortega, Kendall Powell, Delthia Ricks, Natalie Rogers, Hillary Rosner, David Salcedo Hernandez, Megha Satyanarayana, Sarah Scoles, Andrew Seaman, Tom Siegfried, Dana Smith, Luisa Torres, Richard Tresch Fienberg, Erik Vance, M. Mitchell Waldrop, Hannah Waters, and Wudan Yan