A UW-Madison study challenges the perception that scientists avoid the press and that journalists tend to seek out mavericks.
The image of scientists tucked away in a lab away from the public isn’t just a case of being media shy; it was once the professional culture. Former science writer Sharon Dunwoody says getting information on the record was tough because those who spoke to the press were often ostracized by their peers. Dunwoody says scientists in the 20th Century who were interested in interacting with the public, the iconic example is Carl Sagan, the astronomer from Cornell. These individuals essentially were punished by the scientific culture, they were critiqued. They were told that public communication an unacceptable activity. (Sixth item.)