I am intrigued that you single out Chem@Cam
it has always struck me as rather inward looking whereas we should be
looking outwards with these kinds of magazines
Philip
-----Original Message-----
From: psci-com: on the public understanding of science
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Michael Kenward
Sent: 13 June 2003 22:27
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PSCI-COM] Scientific journals and the public
An excellent question. Coz it gives me a chance to rant.
Look at the USA, and you will find serried ranks of science writers in many
universities. I have a particular liking for the guys (that is a genderless
noun there) at Georgia Tech.
http://gtresearchnews.gatech.edu/reshor/default.html
Their publication, Research Horizons, wipes the floor with anything produced
in the UK. It has production standards, and editorial skills, that would
shame many "commercial" publications in the UK.
And who could match Technology Review, the seriously commercial product from
MIT. (Must send a note to Alec Broers suggesting a similar deal for Fen
country.) Runs rings around Scientific American and, unlike New Scientist,
until recently at least, believes that it is important to think about the
applications of science and how it becomes money.
In the UK, what do we get? An estimable magazine from, get this, the
chemistry department in Cambridge. That works because they have put it in
the hands of a chemist (not from Cambridge) who is seriously good and hooked
on communications. Liverpool also has a nice research magazine, but with
limited resources.
Their may be more, but the fact that they haven't reached me says something.
After all, it is easy to pick off most science writers in the UK through the
Association of British Science Writers.
Step back a bit, though. Ask yourself about the commitment - ignore the
quality - of universities to PR in general. They put huge effort into
marketing, into alumni, into conning foreign students into coming into the
UK. PR? A handful of unis are excellent. Many more work bloody hard with
limited resources. But how much time do they have to devote to science?
A staff of two, plus support, the biggest I have come across, have to handle
research in many areas, local issues, the VC's love life and/or creative
accounting and more and more.
I have much admiration for many folks out there, but they fight an uphill
struggle. It doesn't help that the self-help group that was once the home
for uni PR folk now harbours anything with a marketing activity. (They are
also, poor things, averse to troublemakers from the journalistic community
who might upset their sensitivities.) For heaven's sake, they even forced
the non uni PR folks to build their own community, STEMPRA. But that turns
out to have been the making of the latter.
The research councils could be more active. They are getting better. (I have
been following them since the days of the SRC.) But that depends on the
involvement and commitment of the chief executive. They too have been
starved of resources, thanks to the micromanagement of a previous Director
General of the Research Councils who disliked anything glossy. Most RCs now
produce a good magazine, but they can't campaign for research in the UK on
their own.
The Royal Society has a growing empire. Not sure what it does though. I'm
not on the inside these days. Then again, nor are most science writers.
As to scientists taking notice of their PR departments, I work more closely
with the scientists than with the PR departments. In recent months I have
picked up a number of interesting jobs from unis that believe in being
visible but who realise that their PR departments have more than enough to
keep them busy.
A good university PR department would probably adopt a hands off approach.
It would try to persuade departments that PR and media awareness is
important to them. But it would act as advisor rather than performer,
guiding science departments through the process of finding, managing and
paying, not to mention budgeting for, this activity.
I often talk to scientists who are actually keen to get out there and talk
about their research. They are amazed when I say "why don't you talk to your
pr department?" They don't realise that the PR folks would love to hear from
them. Perhaps they expect a regular call. But when did you last see a uni PR
person with time on their hands for this sort of thing.
MK
PS My rates are not reasonable. But they are money well invested.
_______________________________________________________________________
Michael Kenward OBE / Phone: +44 (0)1444 400568 Fax: 401064
/
Science Writer & Stuff / Have words will travel
-----Original Message-----
From: psci-com: on the public understanding of science
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Frank Norman
Sent: 13 June 2003 17:17
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PSCI-COM] Scientific journals and the public
How about the end of the supply chain? Is there any evidence of
Universities and Institutes starting to think more about getting science
writers into their PR departments? Of course that assumes that scientists
will take notice of their PR departments.
On 13 Jun 2003 at 17:01, Michael Kenward wrote:
> While Nature, Science the BMJ, PNAS and the self selected elite can
> devote resources to this sort of thing, and can afford to pay science
> writers, more than 90% of journals will go their own sweet way.
Frank Norman, Librarian. National Institute for Medical Research The
Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK
tel 020 8816 2227 fax 020 8816 2230 email [log in to unmask]
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