Tag Archives: Los Angeles Times

American Association for the Advancement of Science 2016 Mass Media Fellows program is open for submissions

Before getting to the latest information for applying, Matt Miller has written an exuberant and enticing  description of his experiences as a 2016 American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mass Media Fellow for Slate.com in his Oct. 17, 2016 article for them (Note: Links have been removed),

If you’ve ever wanted to write for Slate (or other major media organizations), now is your chance—provided you’re a graduate student or postdoc in science, math, engineering, or medicine [enrolled in a university and with a US citizenship or visa that allows you to receive paymet for work].* The American Association for the Advancement of Science will soon be opening applications for its 2017 Mass Media Fellowship. Along with Slate, publications like Wired, Scientific American, NPR [National Public Radio], and the Los Angeles Times will be hosting fellows who will work as science writers for 10 weeks starting in June of next year.

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While many of my classmates were drawing blood and administering vaccines [Miller is a student in a School of Veterinary Medicine], I flew up to New York and started learning how to be a journalist. In Slate’s Brooklyn office, I read the abstracts of newly released journal articles and pitched countless story ideas. I drank lots of coffee, sat in on editorial meetings, and interviewed scientists from almost every field imaginable (entomologists are the best). Perhaps the highlight of the whole summer was being among the first to cover the rising cost of EpiPens, a scandal that has recently led to a congressional hearing.

A large part of what I did this summer involved explaining the scientific fundamentals behind the research and making the findings more accessible and exciting to a general audience. Science writing involves a great deal of translation; scientists often get so tied up in the particulars of their research—exactly how an enzyme cleaves this protein, or whether a newly discovered bird is technically a new species—that they forget to talk about the wider societal implications their research might have on culture and civilization. But science writing also matters for the same reason all journalism matters. Science journalism can play the important role of watchdog, holding the powerful accountable and airing out things that don’t quite seem right.

You can find the application here. Don’t forget to read the eligibility rules (no students enrolled in English, journalism, science journalism, or other non-technical fields need apply).

Good luck!

*ETA Oct. 18, 2016 9:52 am PDT: The deadline for applications is midnight EST Jan. 15, 2017.