Alright, I'll admit it - I'm a bit of a nerd. I'm really interested in all things science-related. I loved my science classes in school, and I'm a huge fan of science fiction. Of course, I'm no doctor, and I'm not a scientist in any way. But I still love it because, from my perspective, science will show us things that we ordinarily might not notice. We use scientific methods to learn about - our bodies, our world, our universe and much, much more. As as a news-junkie, I'm often looking for news stories about biology, astronomy, the whole shebang. But I continue to be astounded about how the Mainstream Media does not really report on science as science. Instead, it's disguised or ghettoized to specialty markets.
I say that science is disguised because typically a person can find some scientific news stories by looking for "health news" or "technology news." The reality is - these categories of "health news" or "technology news" are indeed applied science, but they're not exactly discussed, or conveyed in scientific terms. On several health pages for example, I see that there are lots of articles that will coach me how to lose weight more effectively, or articles on how to avoid the flu, but where's the stories on scientific discoveries, research, or milestones? Also, from what I can see, "science news" is often ghettoized in much mainstream news outlets (or pushed to the margins). For example, here are some brief cases that I see as a kind of "ghettoization" of science news ...
- In the New York Times, there is a science section published in its printed-paper copy, but only once a week. Also, if you look at the stories posted on the NYTIMES.com site - the stories are few and far between (sometimes they'll post 1 brand-new story a day - that's it). I mention the NYTimes because it's supposedly viewed as being a well-established and respected news outlet.
- There are some specialty markets that cater to science in the mainstream - such as Popular Science, or Popular Mechanics, but these companies are not often invited to become "news-partners" with media-companies like CNN who partner with other specialty-media. In CNN.com's science section, they have no news partners. I have to ask then - Why? And in CNN.com's health section, we see that their news partners are Parenting.com, and Cooking Light. Now there's nothing wrong with that, but where's the other sciences?
- Now, on DailyKos.com - we are fortunate to have scientifically-minded folks posting science-related material. We can thank Vladislaw, the Over Night News Digest folks (Oke, Wader, Magnifico, ScottyUrb, et al). But even here, we're not Mainstream Media really. DailyKos is a web community made available to people who can afford internet access, or a membership to a library, or have a public library nearby. Not so mainstream.
Like I said at my opening, I'm a bit of a geek, so maybe I'm over-reaching, but I don't think so. I've tried to do some looking into the question of science in the Mainstream Media by looking at the number of jobs in science journalism. For instance, this article at ScienceMag.org - tells us that there aren't many jobs out there right now. Similarly, the New York Science Alliance posted an article in 2003 that said there are few jobs in science journalism, and the competition for such jobs is fierce. These articles tell me that - the field of science-news is a small one, and it's not getting any bigger. There appears to be "little interest" in the public sphere for science and scientific intellectuals.
Maybe I'm being demanding. Perhaps I'm asking the Mainstream media too much, but I don't think so. I also bring this up - because I feel as though I often read or hear news stories in which some children don't have any interest in, or know about science. And that's a real shame because we need more doctors and scientists. I have to wonder - is this a result of our Mainstream Media's science-lite style? Is the public sphere not science-savvy because the Mainstream media thinks science is for "eggheads only?" Is this a trend (or mainstay) involving "fear of the intellectual" rearing its ugly head again? Or is this a broader result of the Conservative (Religious) Right - a political movement that tries to cast doubt on the science of evolution, global warming and astronomy?
Now, I don't like making accusations about "who's to blame" per se, but instead, I'd like to see some Change on this. I want the Mainstream media to incorporate more "science news." I feel like all we ever see in the Mainstream media - is politics and the economy (Am I wrong?). I'd like to know if I'm over-analyzing. Do you think there's enough science in the news? Of course, some people on DailyKos might think that I'm just not noticing all the science that's out there. I'd seriously like to hear what you think because I find myself repeatedly wondering - Where's the science?