Rapid Reactions: responding to breaking news. The demands of the 24-hour media machine mean that news journalists often don’t have the luxury of time to track down the best scientists when a science story lands on their desks, so availability can sometimes win out over expertise. This is where the Science Media Centre steps in. When a story breaks – whether it’s the latest flu epidemic, health scare or a potential nuclear crisis – the SMC persuades leading experts to drop everything and engage with the story, then contacts journalists at all the major news outlets to offer those experts for interviews or immediate comment.
Roundups: putting new research into context. One of the other ways the SMC ensures that the media have easy access to scientists and their views is by offering journalists a variety of comments from scientists reacting to the latest research. This service differs from our ‘Rapid Reactions’ as scientists have time to react before new research is announced, rather than in response to breaking news.
With access to embargoed journals before publication, we can pick stories of most interest to journalists, asking third party experts to provide comments and information to put research into context before it appears in the media. The SMC’s unique Roundups help busy journalists critically analyse the strengths and weaknesses of new research, and highlight when studies are very preliminary or display a correlation that should not be read as causation. Equally, when leading scientists are excited about a significant study this can reassure journalists that the study should feature strongly in their coverage.
A study published in BMJ Open looks at the association between herpes simplex virus type 1 and the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. … read more
Scientists comment on an atypical case of BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) detected on a farm in Essex. Prof Ian … read more
Scientists comment on the World Health Assembly adopting the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Pandemic Agreement. Prof Alice Hughes, Group … read more
Scientists comment on the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, following Joe Biden’s diagnosis. Prof Suneil Jain, Professor … read more
Scientists comment on DSIT setting new 10 year budgets for R&D funding. Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, UKRI CEO, said: … read more
A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine looks at a new CRISPR gene therapy for children with a rare … read more
A trial published in Lancet Psychiatry looks at mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression in those who haven’t improved after NHS Talking … read more
A systematic review published in JAMA Psychiatry looks at weight loss drugs (GLP-1 receptor agonists) and mental health. Prof Stella Chan, Charlie … read more
Scientists comment on reports of an EU ‘reset’ which could mean the precision breeding act is dropped from UK legislation. … read more
A study published in PNAS looks at the identification of nanoparticles in human breast milk. Prof Oliver Jones, Professor of Chemistry, … read more
Scientists comment on R&D elements of the Government’s White Paper on immigration. Professor Andrew Morris CBE PMedSci, President of … read more
A conference poster presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Malaga and published in eClinicalMedicine looks at obesity … read more
A conference press release presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Malaga looks at time-restricted eating (TRE) and … read more
A conference poster presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) looks at weight loss drugs (GLP-1s) and reduced alcohol … read more
Scientists comment on hormone-treated beef and chlorinated chicken, following the announcement of a UK-US trade deal. Beef Prof Chris … read more
A study published in JAMA Network Open looks at proximity to Golf Courses and the risk of Parkinson’s Disease. Prof David … read more
A study published in Neurology looks at ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and signs of Parkinson’s disease. Prof Jules Griffin, Director of the … read more
Scientists comment on Ørsted discontinuing the Hornsea 4 offshore wind project. Prof Jun Liang, Professor of Power Electronics and … read more
Scientists comment on new research projects as part of ARIA’s Exploring Climate Cooling programme. Dr Pete Irvine, Research Assistant … read more
Scientists comment on Foresight AI, an AI model trained on de-identified NHS data to predict healthcare needs. Dr Junade … read more
