Reporting Controversial Scientific Facts or Hypothesis
Science operates in the wake of prolonged deliberation. But should science reporters be writing about controversies prior to ascertained facts. Contentious debates make matters innately interesting, but often it is the quest for enhancing comprehension that controversial scientific theories get reported.
While some controversies could be safe to report, there might be some on which it would be better to hold the lid. Controversy over diet and dietary supplements and their benefits to health are supposedly safe controversies. For instance the benefits of garlic pills or aloe vera remain a subject of controversy in as much as they will not kill anybody.
There are other controversies that rage on whether science should proceed with them at all. For instance the debate around cloning takes on religious and ethical concerns. This is a huge controversy that questions whether humans be cloned after the successful cloning of Dolly the Sheep. The same argument holds for embryo stem cell therapy that has yet to corroborate medical success.
Journalists have to be both inquisitive and skeptical in the presentation of scientific controversies. But they have to be discerning and exercise their judgment by being fair to all sides of a debate. In many a case they may not be in a position of the right or wrong but they can certainly be responsible. Reporting contentious, tall or bogus claims needs to be handled with a great deal of care.
While some controversies could be safe to report, there might be some on which it would be better to hold the lid. Controversy over diet and dietary supplements and their benefits to health are supposedly safe controversies. For instance the benefits of garlic pills or aloe vera remain a subject of controversy in as much as they will not kill anybody.
There are other controversies that rage on whether science should proceed with them at all. For instance the debate around cloning takes on religious and ethical concerns. This is a huge controversy that questions whether humans be cloned after the successful cloning of Dolly the Sheep. The same argument holds for embryo stem cell therapy that has yet to corroborate medical success.
Journalists have to be both inquisitive and skeptical in the presentation of scientific controversies. But they have to be discerning and exercise their judgment by being fair to all sides of a debate. In many a case they may not be in a position of the right or wrong but they can certainly be responsible. Reporting contentious, tall or bogus claims needs to be handled with a great deal of care.