HR: 14:25h
AN: ED12C-03 INVITED     [PDF]
TI: The Marketability of Mass Media: Why Newspaper Readers in Texas Want to Hear About Polar Research
AU: * Witze, A
EM: awitze@dallasnews.com
AF: Dallas Morning News, P.O. Box 655237, Dallas, TX 75265 United States
AB: Stories about exploration and adventure play well in any market, even if they are about science, a topic traditionally loathed by journalists. In April 2003 I traveled with the National Science Foundation to cover research activities at the North Pole Environmental Observatory. Surprisingly, audiences in the Southwest couldn't get enough of hearing about researchers from the Northwest drilling holes in the ice at the ends of the earth. I discuss the challenges of gathering stories in a polar environment, the reaction from the general public, and ways to increase the visibility of earth sciences in the mass media.
DE: 6699 General or miscellaneous
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting