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Science Communication and Working with Media

Date: September 29, 2021

Time: 2 - 4 P.M. 

Location: CAPS, room 120

"The benefits to society which are an outgrowth of our research and training often seem self-evident to us within the institution. We must never forget, however, that our capacity to continue will depend on how well those outside the University understand our mission"

- J. Stanley Marshall, President of Florida State University (1969-1976)

Join ORD and Research Communications Assistant Director Kathleen Haughney for an informative, interactive workshop aimed at helping faculty become better communicators of their research and give better interviews to news and media outlets.

Effective scientist-communicators who foster information-sharing and respect between science and the public are essential for true public communication of and engagement with science. However, we currently have too few effective emissaries for science. Communication is typically an acquired, not innate skill, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) maintains that scientists should be provided quality resources to help develop their public communication and outreach skills. Further, scientists are increasingly requested by their institutions and funding agencies to extend beyond the scientific community and communicate their research directly to public audiences, but traditional scientific training typically does not prepare scientists to be effective public communicators.

In the first hour of this workshop, Haughney facilitates a discussion with Dr. Mariana Fuentes about how she communicates her research with media and the public.

The second half of the workshop offers faculty members the opportunity to refine their own science communication in an interactive small-group setting with the opportunity for feedback from FSU's University Communications representatives. Faculty in these small groups will have the opportunity to sign up for a one-on-one Zoom consultation with Haughney for a mock media interview.