The American Association for the Advancement of Science awarded its prestigious Science Journalism Awards to science writers from the print, radio, and television media at the annual banquet of the National Association of Science Writers, February 14 in Philadelphia, PA, at the annual banquet of the National Association of Science Writers. The awards are sponsored by The Whitaker Foundation.
The competition covered articles in newspapers and magazines and broadcast shows on radio and television which were originally published or aired in the United States between July 1, 1996 and June 30, 1997.
Robert Lee Hotz and Julie Marquis of the Los Angeles Times won the competition for the large newspaper category for their October 3 & 13-17, 1996, series entitled “The Brain: A Work in Progress.” The series demonstrated how the latest research on the human brain is shedding light on disease, trauma, emotions, and identity. The team was recognized for its comprehensive package of articles that connect issues of neurophysiology and policy in a compelling way.
Jenni Laidman of The Bay City Times won the award for the small newspaper category for her February 2—July 2, 1997, series entitled “Unnatural Resources: Playing God in the Great Lakes.” Laidman was honored for her enterprising effort in documenting the threat of vanishing species in the Great Lakes.
The award for outstanding science writing in the magazine category went to Fred Guterl of Discover for his November 1996 article “Riddles in the Sand.” Guterl’s article examined the unpredictability surrounding the behavior of grains of sand. He was honored for ambitiously tackling a novel topic and making it interesting to the reader.
In the television category, Kristian Berg, Kim MacDonald, Lisa Blackstone, Lee Carey, Doug Bolin, and Richard C. Hudson of Twin Cities Public Television were honored for an episode of “Newton’s Apple,” a family science series that broadcasts on PBS. The winning episode included a segment on cave formations and an in-studio demonstration of the human eye. The producers were recognized for “providing clear explanations using basic and engaging methods.”
In the radio category, Joe Palca and Michelle Trudeau, (with Robert Stein, Peggy Girshman, and Jane Greenhalgh), won for their five-part series entitled “How the Brain Works,” which aired on National Public Radio on September 16-18, 1996. The team was honored for its “excellent presentation of complex concepts related to current brain research.”
Return to ScienceWriters table of contents.