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Resource Type: Publications

EMTALA and abortions: An explainer and research roundup

“Under a federal law, hospital emergency departments must provide appropriate emergency medical treatment to any patients who need it. But now the U.S. Supreme Court is considering a case that

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How to pitch to a science editor

“Successfully pitching a story to a science editor requires a wide range of skills, from researching their outlet to communicating with them in a professional way. In this practical guide,

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Pitching errors: How not to pitch

“Writing a good pitch is really tough. Writing a bad one is easy. Editors see the same mistakes over and over again, even from good writers.” Seven editors from a

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Ask TON: How much time should I spend preparing a pitch?

Writers and editors at The Open Notebook respond to a question from a reader: “What is a normal amount of time to spend on preparing pitches for magazine feature stories?

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How to successfully pitch The New York Times (or, well, anyone else)

In this article, Tim Herrera (who was, at the time, Smarter Living editor at the New York Times) explains some common do’s and don’t’s of pitching freelance journalism articles. He

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Sharpening ideas: From topic to story

“As science writers, we learn about fascinating topics daily, and explaining that complexity is one of the joys of our work. But to sell the story to our editors, we

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Is this a story? How to evaluate your ideas before you pitch

“When a journalist is on the prowl for a new story, every yarn spun by a friend, every press release, every vacation adventure, and every quirky local news item can

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Finding the science in any story

“Not all science writing has to be deeply academic or focused on dense concepts. Science writing can be crowd-pleasing, and shareable, and even sarcastic or funny. And it can belong

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A book publishing primer for science writers

“From developing an idea, to crafting a proposal and selling it to a publisher, to actually writing the thing itself, publishing a book is an arduous process. Thankfully, you can

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How to cover academic research fraud and errors

This tipsheet shares a video recording and key takeaways from a webinar that The Journalist’s Resource hosted on November 30, 2023. The event featured Ivan Oransky, Elisabeth Bik and Jodi

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Everyone is a climate reporter now

“For many news organizations, especially local ones, climate coverage is still seen as separate and distinct from other beats. But rapidly rising temperatures and a corresponding shift in weather patterns

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Meet the scientist at the center of the covid lab leak controversy

Jane Qiu, an independent science writer based in Beijing, won a 2022 AAAS Kavli Award for this profile of virologist Shi Zhengli, a central figure in the global debate about

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Storygram: B. “Toastie” Oaster’s “Pacific lamprey’s ancient agreement with tribes is the future of conservation”

“In October 2022, Indigenous affairs journalist B. “Toastie” Oaster wrote a High Country News feature about the fate of Pacific lamprey. This lushly written story explores how Indigenous peoples in

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The Contextualization Deficit: Reframing trust in science for multilateral policy

“In a world of growing geopolitical tensions, science remains one common language for developing coordinated international action. When trust in science is compromised, the capacity for cohesive global policy action

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How Science Writing Fuels My Ph.D.

“Research can be an insulating endeavor, but bringing my work out of the lab and sharing it with the wider world of politics helped deepen my appreciation for science and

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How do science journalists decide whether a psychology study is worth covering?

“A recent study finds that sample size is the only factor having a robust influence on 181 science journalists’ ratings of the trustworthiness and newsworthiness of a study. But [the

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The Plague Years: How the rise of right-wing nationalism is jeopardizing the world’s health

Maryn McKenna, senior writer at WIRED and a widely published author, won CASW’s Victor Cohn Prize for Excellence in Medical Science Reporting in 2023 for her coverage of infectious diseases

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A field at a crossroads: Genetics and racial mythmaking

Ashley Smart, senior editor at Undark, associate director of the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT, and CASW’s treasurer, won a 2023 NASW Science and Society award for this story.

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Ask TON: Crafting a winning fellowship proposal

“What are the essentials of a strong proposal for a journalism fellowship? Fellowships can boost your career in many ways. They provide a supportive environment that can yield more impactful

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Paying for it: Getting grants and fellowships

“Grants and fellowships have long been important funding sources, providing writers time and money to dig deeper into a story or subject area than they otherwise could. These sources of

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How to report on physics and physicists in an accurate and accessible way

“You as journalists can have life-changing impacts on those reading, watching or listening. To help, the IOP has produced a guide and a handy checklist to help ensure that your

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To help journalists cover rising temperatures, newsrooms need to start with climate literacy

Sahana Ghosh, associate editor at Nature India, describes lessons and takeaways from a workshop that she led to help Indian newsrooms address climate misinformation. “I came away with a strong

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The Forgotten Continent

In this story, freelance science writer Jane Qiu explores how fossil finds in China — dating back to the Peking Man, found in 1929 — have challenged established ideas about

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Lowcountry on the Edge

Tony Bartelme’s series about how climate change has impacted the South Carolina Lowcountry won an award from the American Geophysical Union in 2017. Showcase hosts one of these stories. Bartelme,

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Science Communication in a Crisis: An Insider’s Guide

“If a scientist’s goal is to deliver content and expertise to the people who need it, then other stakeholder groups—the media, the government, industry—need to be considered as partners to

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Recent Posts

  • Tip sheet: Co-creating science stories with your audience
  • Tip sheet: The story behind award-winning stories: A conversation with Usha Lee McFarling
  • Tip sheet: Reporting on hot-button topics as a science writer: Lessons from abortion coverage
  • Tip sheet: Science journalism and communication in the misinformation era
  • Tip sheet: Best practices for pitching freelance stories

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