|
Grad Students Attend Science Writers Conference
11/03/09
Author:
Amber Roessner
Contact: PatriciaThomas, pthomas@uga.edu
Photograph by: Amber Roessner
E-mail this article
Printer friendly Version
Six graduate students from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication's health and medical journalism program headed down to Austin, Texas, Oct. 16-20, for more than a taste of barbecue and the swinging music scene.
These public health-minded journalists swarmed Austin, making connections with science writers from the United States and beyond, learning to be more savvy users of social networking tools and web technology, and picking up story ideas about green energy, information technology, biology and even wildflower ecology. All this and more happened during ScienceWriters 2009, the joint annual meeting of the National Association of Science Writers (NASW) and the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing.
"This conference had a lot of practical application programs that are always important for someone coming from a science background without a lot of journalistic training," said Jordan Sarver, a second-year master's student in Grady College's health and medical journalism program. 
Second-year health and medical journalism student Jordan Sarver (right) pitches a story idea to Terence Samuel, editor of www.theroot.com, at ScienceWriters 2009 conference.
Sarver, who received his bachelor's of science from Morehouse College in Atlanta, took advantage of conference sessions that focused on breaking into the science writing industry, pitching ideas to Terence Samuel, editor of www.theroot.com, The Washington Post's daily newsmagazine with an African-American perspective.
"It's good to get perspectives from someone in the field," he said. "You gain an idea of what editors are looking for and can network on an informal level so that you can build a friendship that might segue into a professional relationship."
Kathleen Frey, a first-year master's student in the Eugene P. Odom School of Ecology with a keen interest in health and medical journalism, took a cue from Sarver, attending a power pitch session with science editors from publications such as The New York Times, The L.A. Times and Wired magazine. Though she may not have come away from the session with a freelance contract, she says that the experience was invaluable. 
Kathleen Frey, an ecology master's student who is also studying health and medical journalism, takes notes in a ScienceWriters 2009 session in Austin, Texas. Frey is also an undergraduate advisor at Grady College.
"I've been able to talk to people who know so much about one topic," she said. "In one short three minute conversation, you can learn so much more than searching online or reading magazines. These people who specialize in certain areas of science writing are walking encyclopedias.
"So from this conference, I've come away with story ideas; I've come away with contacts; I've come away with an understanding of the hot topics in science writing and where those issues are heading. But, above all, it's rekindled a desire to write about science. This has been a real source of encouragement."
Frey's remarks sum up the logic behind Patricia Thomas' decision to encourage students to travel to the Longhorn country. "I've been attending NASW since very early in my science writing career," said Thomas, director of Grady's health and medical journalism graduate program and Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism. "I've always seen it as a place to learn, fellowship and network."
Yanli Liu, a first-year master's health and medical journalism student at Grady, chats with Phil Hilts, director of The Knight Science Journalism Fellowships at Massachusetts Institutes of Technology.
In addition to making valuable industry connections, Sonya Collins, a first-year master's student in the health and medical journalism program, gained new insights about climate change in Kevin Gurney's session on the impact of carbon on the global ecosystem. Collins is interested in covering environmental science issues.
"Even though he had a dismal diagnosis, he raised a really good question about how journalists should communicate this to people," she said. "I didn't know that there was such a discrepancy between scientists who believe that climate change is a problem and lay people who don't believe it."
Deborah Chasteen, a master's student in health and medical journalism, also gained new insights into the similarities between journalists and scholars in the field of science. 
Grady health and medical journalism student Sonya Collins, plays close attention during Kevin Gurney's "Carbon and Climate: Some Unfortunate Surprises" session at CASW.
"They both work in the same way, which I find inspiring," she said. "They start with a question, and although they may tackle it in slightly different manners, ultimately they are asking: who, what, when, where, and why."
Katie Smith, a student in Thomas' health and medical journalism sequence, agreed.
"The conference opened my eyes to the culture of science writers," she said. "It's interesting to see people of the same profession gather in the same location and exchange ideas, and it's reassuring to see that other people throughout the country are encountering the same issues and challenges."
|
