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September 2006

• Think only U.S. newspapers are in trouble ...
• "Peer review within science journalism"
• YouTube.com video lampooning Al Gore's movie
• Jan. 2007 conference: "Science & Society: Closing the Gap"

Think only U.S. newspapers are in trouble and looking for new approaches? Think again.

The British newsmagazine The Economist, in a characteristically detailed package of stories in its Aug. 24 issue looked around the world at an industry that is troubled in many places:

For most newspaper companies in the developed world, 2005 was miserable. They still earn almost all of their profits from print, which is in decline. As people look to the internet for news and young people turn away from papers, paid-for circulations are falling year after year. Papers are also losing their share of advertising spending. Classified advertising is quickly moving online.

But wait. It gets worse:

Newspapers have not yet started to shut down in large numbers, but it is only a matter of time. Over the next few decades half the rich world's general papers may fold.

Even so, The Economist did not forecast dire results for democracy as a result of newspapers' cutbacks in their core product, journalism.

Democracy "has survived as readers have shunned papers and papers have shunned what was in stuffier times thought of as serious news. And it will surely survive the decline to come. That is partly because a few titles that invest in the kind of investigative stories which often benefit society the most are in a good position to survive, as long as their owners do a competent job of adjusting to changing circumstances."

It's hard to see how continued investigative journalism by "a few titles" – national newspapers – could make up for the loss of watchdog reporting by local and regional papers in their particular areas. Still, The Economist's world-ranging take on a crucial issue is thoughtful and well worth reading. [ Back to top ]

"Peer review within science journalism."

That's how the Knight Science Journalism Fellowship, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, is promoting its new five-day-a-week we-based service for reporters covering environment, science, and medicine.

Highly regarded freelance writer Charlie Petit, a contributing editor for U.S. News & World Report, will be doing the heavy lifting for the "Knight Science Journalism Tracker". Long a science writer with the San Francisco Chronicle, Petit is a former president of the National Association of Science Writers, and he is on the Board of the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing. He has contributed to periodicals ranging from Nature and Science to Mosaic, Earth, National Geographic, and Smithsonian.

The site seeks to provide journalists "convenient and timely access to the work of their peers" across the U.S. so that "they can better evaluate and improve their own performance." It seeks to post, by 1 p.m. EDT each weekday, materials related to publication of science news in general circulation news media. The site focuses primarily on English-language U.S. newspapers and wire services.

The site also encourages reporters to suggest stories for Petit's attention, particularly "worthy enterprise and investigative pieces."

A note: Environmental journalists with a narrow focus on environment will find this site goes well beyond those issues and into a much broader range of science-based stories. Many will recognize that as a plus – and not a minus – for those still focusing on environment and natural resources stories. [ Back to top ]

It may or may not qualify as environmental journalism – it probably does – but in any case, The Wall Street Journal's sleuthing into the origins of a YouTube.com video lampooning Al Gore's movie about global warming, "An Inconvenient Truth," is a clever example of online investigation.

In an August 3 article, the Journal reported that the satirical video in question was a seemingly homemade effort, as are so many YouTube offerings, but apparently had a decidedly more professional origin:

In an email exchange with The Wall Street Journal, Toutsmith (the screen name of the person who posted the video) didn't answer when asked who he was or why he made the video, with slightly more than 59,000 views on YouTube. However, computer routing information contained in an email sent from Toutsmith's Yahoo account indicate it didn't come from an amateur working out of his basement.

Instead, the email originated from a computer registered to DCI Group, a Washington, D.C., public relations and lobbying firm whose clients include oil company Exxon Mobil Corp.