Writers will soon be facing the deadline of IRS 1040 forms, an annual chore that is one of the few constants in our continually changing society. In recognition of that shared ordeal, here are some quotations (invariably negative; seldom positive) about America's tax system that bring to vibrant life a dry subject that has long been the source of fierce political contention.
ScienceWriters magazine
When the Zika outbreak swept Brazil in 2015, Brazilian journalists were the first to cover the event. But it can be a challenge for them to place stories like that in U.S. and European publications. Editors and freelance writers were asked about the challenges writers face in working across international boundaries.
ScienceWriters, Winter 2017-18
News from the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017, the final report of NASW's ad hoc membership committee, what famous writers of the past have said about taxes, and AAAS launches a a new service to provide scientific expertise and context on deadline. Full text visible only to NASW members.
UC San Diego's Divisions of Biological and Physical Sciences have launched a Research Communications Program designed to help scientists advocate for and communicate the relevance of their work to the public, political representatives and the news media.
The current media landscape is a confusing swirl of reality, misinformation, and so-called fake news. How can science communicators navigate a political climate that's increasingly hostile to both science and journalism? Experts from several related disciplines addressed the situation at a day-long conference hosted by the Rockefeller University.
David Perlman is retiring from journalism. He's been a science writer through it all: The discovery of Lucy, Dolly the Sheep, the identification of exoplanets, the AIDS epidemic. He has a clip of his first story about AIDS on his office wall. It's maybe 12 or 15 inches long and was published in June 1981, around the start of the global scourge.
In January, an invitation to speak at a public-health workshop in Ethiopia arrived in Emily Caldwell's email inbox. The presentation topic was vaguely described as "health communication." Caldwell was thrilled to accept.
Science writer Brian Vastag is taking part in an intense experiment aimed at finding out if and how an infection may have disrupted his nervous system, leaving him with myalgic encephalomyelitis, commonly known as chronic fatigue syndrome, or ME/CFS.
ScienceWriters, Fall 2017
A report on the Sept. 6 conference on science, journalism, and democracy; why U.S. and European markets aren't more welcoming to foreign journalists; David Perlman retires from the best job in the world; Annual Reviews launches a digital magazine; UC San Diego wins a grant to improve the communication ability of researchers; tax breaks after natural disasters; plus news from NASW and WCSJ2017. Full text visible to NASW members only.
The NASW Travel Fellowship to AAAS is one of three signature programs of the NASW Education Committee (together with the NASW Mentoring Program and NASW Internship Fair). The fellow experience includes specialized training and guidance on how to cover a meeting and how to report and structure stories, and several rounds of one-on-one editing by NASW volunteers.