A scientist's life is a busy one, and sometimes it can include interacting with the news media to share the findings of their research. But talking to reporters is not something most scientists learn in school. The first Penn Media Training Workshop, aimed at science and medical faculty from across the entire University, was designed to fill that gap.
Held on April 5th and organized by the Office of University Communications and the Penn Medicine Department of Communications with funding sponsorship from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, the program provided training for 30 researchers from the schools of Medicine, Arts and Sciences, Engineering and Applied Science, Veterinary Medicine, Dental Medicine and Nursing.
Steven J. Fluharty, PhD, senior vice provost for Research and incoming dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, welcomed the guests and faculty. “Media is an essential tool for communicating about science. It provides the narrative that bridges the gap between the scientific enterprise and its understanding by the public,” he said. “Scientists and the media have much in common and much to learn from each other – they are curious, seek evidence based answers and strive to clearly communicate their views.”
The training kicked off with a panel of reporters and Penn faculty who have recently been featured in the news media. Journalists from “ABC World News Tonight," Science, The Philadelphia Inquirer and WHYY Radio provided pointers and lessons on how best to interact with the media. Penn faculty included the panel moderator Mark Liberman, PhD, Christopher H. Brown Distinguished Professor, Department of Linguistics and professor, Department of Computer and Information Science; Michael Grandner, PhD, instructor, Department of Psychiatry and member of the Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology; and Cynthia Otto, DVM, PhD, associate professor of Critical Care, Department of Clinical Studies-Philadelphia and director of Penn Vet’s Working Dog Center. Topics included the panelists’ thoughts on the nature of science journalism, what makes research newsworthy, how to make research relatable to a mass audience, and how to attract media attention to scientific and medical research findings.
In addition, staffers from the two communications offices also led sessions on how to work with the University and Penn Medicine press offices, the differences in communicating with scientists and communicating with lay audiences, and shaping messages for particular audiences.
The program concluded with mock interviews between participants and Mark Abdelmalek, MD, a health producer with
ABC News.