HR: 1340h
AN: ED33A-0880    [Abstracts]
TI: Professional Development Workshops for the Media: A Model for Engaging Scientists and Journalists in Earth and Space Sciences
AU: * CoBabe-Ammann, E
EM: ecobabe@lasp.colorado.edu
AF: Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, 1234 Innovation Drive, Boulder, CO 80303, United States
AU: Jakosky, B
EM: jakosky@lasp.colorado.edu
AF: Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, 1234 Innovation Drive, Boulder, CO 80303, United States
AB: Historically, there has been a delineation between those activities that promote the education of the general public (formal and information education) and those that involve journalists and the media (public affairs). However, over the last several years, there has been recognition that in the interest of "full spectrum science communication", journalists, who deliver more than 85% of the science news and content to the general public, may be legitimately seen as an audience for education activities. The goal of these activities is not primarily to promote a specific story, event or theme, but instead to broaden and deepen journalists' understanding of space science and to promote increased communication and understanding among journalists, scientists and educators. In the last several years, the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics has initiated workshops for the professional development of journalists as a cornerstone of its Education program. To date, workshops have covered Mars System Science, Life in Extreme Environments, Extrasolar Planets, Out Planets, and soon, the Role of Uncertainty in Climate Change. These programs bring together 20 elite journalists from both print and broadcast and 6-8 internationally recognized scientists in a 3-4 day encounter. Evaluation of past workshops suggests that the journalists not only feel that these workshops are a worthwhile use of their time, but that they impact the quality of their writing. Several indicated that the quality of the writing and its content had been noticed by their editor and allowed them to more easily ‘pitch' space science stories when they were in the news. Many, including several regional journalists, commented that the workshop provided a level of background information that would help them for years to come. In this talk, we present the LASP media workshop model, talk about editorial barriers for journalists and the impact of the workshops, and discuss lessons learned that increase participation by the nation's leading media outlets.
UR: http://lasp.colorado.edu/education
DE: 0800 EDUCATION
DE: 6600 PUBLIC ISSUES
DE: 6620 Science policy (0485)
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting