This is hilarious and sooooooo true. Science reporters drive me nuts and I am layman concerning the subject.
A small snippet:
If the research is about a potential cure, or a solution to a problem, this paragraph will describe how it will raise hopes for a group of sufferers or victims.
This paragraph elaborates on the claim, adding weasel-words like “the scientists say” to shift responsibility for establishing the likely truth or accuracy of the research findings on to absolutely anybody else but me, the journalist.
In this paragraph I will state in which journal the research will be published. I won’t provide a link because either a) the concept of adding links to web pages is alien to the editors, b) I can’t be bothered, or c) the journal inexplicably set the embargo on the press release to expire before the paper was actually published.
(ht Cosmic Conservative who notes:
The idea that most science “reporters” put this much thought into the reporting they do on a science subject is flat out laughable.
)
