Event Title
Science News and Public Discourse: The GMO Debate
Location
Parker-Reed, SSWAC
Start Date
30-4-2015 2:00 PM
End Date
30-4-2015 3:55 PM
Project Type
Poster
Description
Journalists connect the general public to current events. It is through their writing that people educate themselves and use this information to form their own opinions. As writers, they are responsible for managing the boundaries between researchers, science communicators, and the public audience With respect to who writes science news, generalists have nudged specialists out of their sector in many major publications. This can lend itself to more talk of social implications instead of fostering technical understanding. With that being said, there is a distinct advantage to focusing on the context of science issues. It allows readers to relate the articles to their own lives and as a result, theyre more likely to read. The Pew Research Center found that there is a 51% gap between scientists who believe that GMOs are safe for consumption (88%) and members of the public (37%). The GMO debate is still very relevant and ongoing today with recent legislation battles over labeling and the value in labeling items as GMO free. This issue is based in science and people are forming their own opinions so I have decided to investigate how journalists wrote about GMOs in 2014. How does science news affect and influence public discourse surrounding the Genetically Modified Organism debate?
Faculty Sponsor
Jim Fleming
Sponsoring Department
Colby College. Science, Technology and Society Program
CLAS Field of Study
Interdisciplinary Studies
Event Website
http://www.colby.edu/clas
ID
1162
Science News and Public Discourse: The GMO Debate
Parker-Reed, SSWAC
Journalists connect the general public to current events. It is through their writing that people educate themselves and use this information to form their own opinions. As writers, they are responsible for managing the boundaries between researchers, science communicators, and the public audience With respect to who writes science news, generalists have nudged specialists out of their sector in many major publications. This can lend itself to more talk of social implications instead of fostering technical understanding. With that being said, there is a distinct advantage to focusing on the context of science issues. It allows readers to relate the articles to their own lives and as a result, theyre more likely to read. The Pew Research Center found that there is a 51% gap between scientists who believe that GMOs are safe for consumption (88%) and members of the public (37%). The GMO debate is still very relevant and ongoing today with recent legislation battles over labeling and the value in labeling items as GMO free. This issue is based in science and people are forming their own opinions so I have decided to investigate how journalists wrote about GMOs in 2014. How does science news affect and influence public discourse surrounding the Genetically Modified Organism debate?
https://digitalcommons.colby.edu/clas/2015/program/186