ABSTRACT
Breast implants. Gulf War syndrome. Global warming. Acid rain. Every day, journalists are bombarded with news releases and press packets from scientists, scientific journals, scientific societies, and from industry, special interest groups, environmental groups, and consumer groups, all of whom have an interest in shaping public interpretations of science. Some of the materials that land on journalists’ desks downplay the uncertainties of knowledge claims bearing on public choices; others do not. Some interpret findings as unqualified breakthroughs; others interpret the same findings as self-serving hype. Some claim near consensus, if not certainty, with respect to what scientists think they know; others counter by stressing the controversial nature of such claims.
