Perspectives
journalists combine these two elements to science and society present scientific results as embroiled in controversy, especially important political How geneticists can help reporters controversies such as gay rights, racial justice, patent rights and so on4. to get their story right On the other hand, science journalists also feel compelled both by journalistic norms, and by the canons of the science they Celeste M. Condit are covering, to give much of their space Abstract | Many geneticists are disgruntled with the coverage of genetics in to ‘objective’ representations of the subject matter that they are covering. There has the mass media, yet geneticists themselves have a part to play in improving that been substantial debate about the possibility, coverage. This article aims to help geneticists to do so by explaining the forces desirability and meaning of objectivity in that shape science news. It provides some specific options for reducing hype, news coverage and in general5–7. However, countering genetic determinism and preventing the use of genetics research into reporters’ norms has indicated to reinforce discriminatory messages, slants that many reporters are inclined to that they attend to what they perceive as objectivity, and that they operationalize it give to their articles. largely by the inclusion of statements from ‘both sides’ of a subject8. This means that Geneticists and critics of genetics might common problems, including hype, genetic two sides are presented, regardless of how agree on little else than that the coverage of determinism and discrimination. many sides might actually warrant attention. genetics by the news media is lamentably As a result of this conflict between the need poor. However, scientists bear some respon- What drives science journalism? to hype and the need to give space to detailed, sibility, both in their own writing and in Science journalists, for the most part, are objective treatments, science news articles their discussions with journalists, for the people who find science interesting and at often feature a combination of dramatic over- content of the news about genetics. This idea least potentially valuable. However, many statements and colourful descriptions mixed has recently received clear evidential support news pieces about scientific topics are with statements that ostensibly balance by the research of Bubela & Caulfield1. Their not written by reporters who specialize these claims with opposing or moderating comparisons of original scientific sources in science news, and journalists are paid views and a limited level of technical detail. and news reports about those sources in primarily to attract demographically valu- Science news therefore usually has a slant, Canadian and US newspapers showed that able audiences so that advertisers will pay or frame9, that plays up the wonders (or the ‘hype’ and much of the key content high rates. This creates a problem for science occasionally the potential threats) of a in the articles was in parity with the original journalists, which has been described as scientific breakthrough, but also includes scientific articles. Although scientists cannot the ‘hype–space conflict’2. That is, science a more-or-less detailed nod at ‘the other side’. ensure that journalists get the story right, reporters experience a conflict over whether The slant or frame is not merely a they can certainly enable journalists to do so. to use their space to present hyped content subtle shading of a story. It can determine Scientists have a social responsibility or more dispassionate and thorough the meaning that a story communicates. to talk knowledgeably with reporters, and to descriptions. Horowitz’s10 recent analysis of press coverage do so is in the interest of science in an era On the one hand, science journalists of research into gene–environment interac- when public funding and control over sci- must create articles that attract the interest tions is illustrative. He showed that news ence is significant. However, some scientists and attention of many people, and they are stories about a high-impact article by avoid this task because it is onerous. At competing against more titillating informa- Caspi et al., published in Science in 2003, a minimum, it requires the same level of tion about sports and celebrities, more were generally framed by the idea that men- preparation that one would give to a plat- frightening information about rapes and tal illness was genetic, rather than by the idea form presentation at a scientific conference. murders, and more immediately momentous that the cases of depression that were studied Such time and care are warranted, because the information about war and global econom- were the result of a gene–environment inter- reach of the reporter is larger than that of ics. This leads to the need to hype the article. action11. The original scientific article was the academic conference (at least in the short As Dorothy Nelkin observed long ago, jour- distinctive because it showed that depression term). To become more skilful at guiding nalists most often do so by designing stories in humans could result from a particular journalists, it might be helpful to understand that frame science as offering wonders and gene–environment interaction; specifically, the nature of journalistic articles, and this miracles, and occasionally do so through from the co-presence of an allele of the Perspective seeks to help in this by examining frameworks that present scientific discov- 5‑HTT gene (also known as SLC6A4) and potential solutions to a few important and eries as frightening threats3. Frequently, major life stressors. It specifically indicated
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news stories announcing the discovery 6 of alcoholism as a genetic disease at three Balanced widely separated time points. The first major 15 period reported heritability studies, the sec- Yes, mostly 9 ond reported genetic association studies and No, mostly the third focused on women. In each wave, Conrad and Weinberg’s analysis showed that the news articles presented undue optimism 2 about a cure based on the research, and/or No only an overemphasis on the genetic component of the condition. 6 Yes only The enthusiasm of scientists for their work can feed such hype (as can the demands for grant funding). For example, in 1993, medical geneticist W. French Figure 1 | Slant on the issue of whether race is genetic in a sample of news articles about Anderson predicted that soon, “…any human genetic variation. The figure shows an analysis of all news articles from 1990 to 1992 and physician can take a vial off a shelf and Nature Reviews | Genetics 18 from 2001 to 2003 in LexisNexis academic, in which there was co-occurrence of ‘genetics’ inject an appropriate gene into a patient.” and ‘race’, or co-occurrence of ‘human’, genetic’ and ‘variation’, within ten words. Articles were The enthusiasm for the prospects of gene coded for the degree of slant by a paid independent coder, after establishing inter-coder reliabil- therapy among some members of the ity using two coders trained on the five fixed categories plus an ‘ambiguous’ category (which was scientific community drove a tidal wave of empty). Data from REF. 2. optimistic reporting that suggested a 10-year time frame for gene therapy as practically a cure-all19. The optimism was immensely that the presence of the allele alone was not people with advanced degrees in other fields overstated, at least for the time period for associated with variation in levels of depres- — cannot be expected to have the technical which it was predicted. sion; nonetheless, the ‘genetic discoveries!’ vocabulary that is required to understand Scientific findings can be enormously frame that was used in the news articles details of specialties such as genetics. For distant from social applications for both left the impression that this was a ‘gene for this reason, science journalists must be technical and social reasons. Although the depression’, rather than conveying the more expert at simplification. Figures of speech implications of this distance might seem interesting and complicated portrait of the such as metaphors constitute a fundamental obvious, in practice they have been repeat- pair of interacting variables. resource of language13–15, so they are often edly overlooked. To provide an accurate There are often strong trends among used to provide comparisons that can be eas- picture of the implications of a scientific journalists’ choices of frames for particular ily grasped. For example, in a single article discovery and to avoid a sense of betrayal by topics. For example, coverage of genetics about cancer genetics by Gina Kolata16, the public, when speaking with journalists for human medical interventions is usually scientists are quoted or directly attributed about their work, geneticists might consider more favourable than coverage of genetics as using seven rhetorical figures, including curbing their own hopefulness. Instead, they for genetically modified crops (GMO)12. snowball, chain reaction, Achilles heel, look- might enumerate the scientific roadblocks, However, there are also differences ing ‘mean’, bomb, molecular razor and black and perhaps the social ones, that stand in among reporters. In Europe, substantially box. Such simplifications inevitably contain the way of the desired applications. In most more reporters have chosen a negative misrepresentations. To take common exam- cases, it also would be appropriate to remind slant on GMO than in the United States12. ples, a gene is neither precisely a ‘blueprint’ the reporter of the ever-present potential for Similarly, as FIG. 1 indicates, journalists in the nor a ‘recipe’ because it is not consciously results to be overturned by further research. United States came to the issue of whether drawn up by a designer or a chef. Because race is genetically grounded with a range of such simplifications are nonetheless neces- Avoiding determinism slants, but leaned mostly towards the frame sary for communicating with non-experts, In the narrow sense, genetic determinism that ‘race is genetic’. Knowing the type of the pertinent question is whether the simpli- can be defined as the belief that genes are slant that is typically used by a reporter fications that are chosen encourage people the only major contributor to the form, enhances the likelihood that one can provide to make judgments that are likely to lead behaviour and life course of an organism. effective balance or, occasionally, correction. them towards faulty choices. The three most Given that genes evolve that produce Finally, science journalists face the widely written about pitfalls that geneticists reproductively effective responses to ranges problem of communicating with non- might want to steer journalists away from of particular environmental stimuli, genetic experts about highly technical material. The include hyping of scientific potential, genetic determinism is generally understood among difficulty of this task can be seen by taking determinism and genetic discrimination. scientists to be false. Two organisms with a paragraph of your own scientific prose the same genes will manifest different and evaluating it with the Flesch–Kincaid Reducing hype forms, behaviours and life courses in dif- ‘readability’ tool in your word-processing In a research report with the tongue-in- ferent environments. It is the interaction of program. Try to rewrite your paragraph at cheek title, “Has the gene for alcoholism different factors that determine outcomes. the tenth-grade level, which is fairly typical been discovered 3 times since 1980?”17, Unfortunately, some influential science of local newspapers (the tool maxes out Conrad and Weinberg showed how the journalists tend to write as if a genetically at twelfth-grade). Lay people — even lay journalistic norms discussed above led to deterministic view is the only possible
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scientific view, whereas taking account of the term genetic and adds a prefix with a accounts, they either deny the role of genes environments is non-scientific (especially meaning that is surely unclear to the general altogether (15% did so in Bates’s study), or with regard to human behaviours). Such public. Using a lay vocabulary such as ‘pairs’ they simply shift their attention over to a perspectives can be encouraged by scientists, or ‘pairings’ provides an easy-to-grasp noun behavioural explanatory system. In more even those who are not absolute determinists, that gives relatively equal emphasis to than 100 in-depth interviews of lay people, when they over-emphasize the role of genes different components. we’ve found that extremely few people or neglect the influence of environments Another source of genetic determin- have an explicit integration of genetic and (which are easily controlled in laboratories ism is the unwillingness of journalists to behavioural accounts as a gene–environment and can therefore be considered as back- try to teach the lay public the word allele. interaction. Avoiding deterministic ground from the geneticist’s perspective). Consequently, they are reduced to writing implications is consequently challenging. With such encouragement, journalists are that a discovery is a ‘gene for’ a disease or, The phrase ‘variant gene’ is likely to be likely to use the ‘genes win!’ frame, which more recently, a ‘variant gene’. What does even more problematic, because it suggests portrays a genetic discovery as a triumph of a ‘gene for’ mean to lay people? Bates et al. to many readers that the gene (rather than genetics (and science) over behaviour, culture asked people in 13 focus groups in the the allele) is something that only some peo- or environment. For example, articles by United States, “What does ‘a gene for heart ple have. It does not effectively translate the such journalists tend to misrepresent herit- disease’ mean?”22 They coded their com- idea that all humans have a shared stretch ability studies in humans as though they are a ments and found that more than one-quarter of DNA that codes for a particular protein, measure of the extent to which genes trump of them indicated a belief that the affected but that there are single base pair modifica- environments, rather than understanding person would absolutely get heart disease tions among people’s DNA in that stretch them as a measure of the relative influence (FIG. 2). Opinion polls have consistently that produce proteins with modified forms. of hereditary factors of multiple kinds within shown that about one-quarter to one-third Additionally, journalists and the public will a limited range of environments20,21. Owing of the US public endorse genetic determin- most often lack the context shared by geneti- to the biases of the journalists and the ism, although this varies substantially by the cists, that everyone has some rare alleles at complexities of the concepts and operation- particular characteristic or disease23. More some loci, so that this phrase can also be alizations of heritability, it is probably useless detailed parsing of lay attitudes in ongoing stigmatizing (a tendency that is probably to try to use this word with most journalists. research by our group shows that the enhanced by the similar sound qualities of However, there are other ways to commu- interaction of two different discourse tracks ‘mutant’ and ‘variant’). nicate about the important role of genes in produces the following results24. Most people Our work with community advisory biological outcomes. interpret statements of genetic causation in a boards and focus groups has shown that the One option is to insist on replacing the highly deterministic fashion. However, they term ‘version of a gene’ is a better lay transla- ‘gene versus environment’ frame with have two separate, non-integrated tracks for tion. To communicate that a particular the ‘gene–environment interaction’ frame. explaining health causation. In addition to a version of a gene is associated with higher As Horowitz’s analysis indicates, this is not genetic explanation, they have a behavioural chances of particular unwanted outcomes, easy to achieve10. Although medical genetics account, which most of them prefer to use the Multiplex Genetic Susceptibility Testing is rapidly outgrowing the ‘one gene, one whenever possible. Thus, the poll results Study initiated by the Social and Behavioural disease’ (OGOD) model, journalists and lay show that modest levels of net determinism Sciences Branch of the US National Human individuals are still rehearsing their high result from people’s shifting between the Genome Research Institute, under the school biology lectures, which taught eye two tracks. To avoid the conclusions of direction of Colleen McBride, is using the colour, for example, as a single-gene model the determinism they find implicit in genetic short-hand, ‘risk version of a gene’. of the causation of human characteristics. A society-wide shift to the more complex understanding that is currently being pieced together in studies of obesity, heart disease, 27 (15%) No risk diabetes and other diseases will not come 51 (28%) immediately, but awareness of reporters’ Absolutely determined tendency to collapse the gene–environment frame back into the genes win frame can help one to generate a clear, consistent counter to this outdated story. With regard to the Caspi et al. 11 article described above, for example, a consistent statement that a 102 (56%) gene–environment pairing has been found Heightened risk that is more likely to produce depression than other environmental or genetic factors on their own is more likely to enable a story in which the news was not the discovery Figure 2 | Numbers and percentages of statements indicating perceived risk level in 13 focus of a gene, but the discovery of a gene– groups asked “What does ‘a gene for heart disease’ mean?” Focus-groupNature participants Reviews | Genetics were environment pair. The recent trend to try to recruited through nomination by multiracial community advisory boards. Statements were placed transfer the term ‘epigenetic’ to the public into categories by a paid independent coder, after establishing inter-coder reliability using two realm only enhances the adoption of the coders trained in the category system. Only comments reporting a risk level are tallied here. genes win frame, because it centralizes Percentages are rounded. Data from REF. 22.
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Table 1 | Variations among labels used to describe human groups by lay people, scientists and journalists Apparent Lay people asked to “list some Labels used in 50 published Labels used in 57 newspaper articles describing organizing principle races” in 15 focus groups* articles in scientific journals‡ the debate about whether race is genetic§ Skin colour Black, white White|| White, black, people of colour, colored, brown, red, mulatto, dark-skinned, non-black, lighter-skinned Continent Asian, Australian, Native North American Europeans, Native Americans (?), Asians, Africans, American (?) American Indian (?) Nationality Mexican, Cuban, Chinese, New Guinea, Swiss, Brazilian, Chinese, Swedes, Indians, Fiji, Saudia Arabia, Greece, Korean, Japanese Belgium, Portuguese, Chinese Japanese, Nigerians, Mexican, Portuguese, Americans and 23 others Tribal Aboriginal Pygmy people, Cherokee Indian, Blackfoot Indian, Kung Continent X African American, Asian African American, Mexican African American, Afro-American, Mexican Nationality American American Americans, Chinese Americans, American-Europeans, Linguistic Group Hispanic Hispanic, Bantu-speakers, Gullah-speaking African Americans Region Latino, West African, Latin Latin American Latino, Northern Europeans, sub-Saharan Africans, (sub-continental) American, South Asian Indian sub-continent, Middle East, Siberia and 10 others Religion Jews Jews, Amish, Ashkanazi Jews, Eastern European Jews, Siddhi Other Caucasian, ‘other’ Anglo Saxon, Swiss Caucasian, Caucasian, Caucasian Americans, white Americans, Caucasian Mestizos from African pygmies, Western hemisphere blacks, Columbia, African American non-Latino whites, Oriental, Gypsies, Melungeon, and Caucasian populations from Roanoke, Phonecians, Eurasian, multiracial, Indo- Marion County, Indiana, USA Europeans, Basque, Negro, white Finland and 8 others *From REF. 41. There was a total of 53 mentions of these terms. ‡Search on Medline (accessed 27 October 2003) for ‘race’ and ‘genetics’. The first 50 rank relevancy out of 306 are given. §Purposive sample of newspaper articles on ‘race’ and ‘genetics’ together, as described in FIG. 1 (J. A. Lynch & C.M.C., unpublished data). ||The exclusive use of ‘white’ in this category might be due to the limited sample size. However, it might also be a product of the widely documented bias in Western nations toward centralizing ‘whiteness’, that is, whiteness becomes the norm against which all other groups are compared40. For the scientists, white remains the normative term, but because skin colour is not the primary focus, non-skin-colour-based terms are used for the comparison groups. On this account, the black–white dialectic that has historically dominated race relations in the United States might explain the selection of these two terms in the focus groups.
Countering discrimination grouping that scientists use today tend to and, previously, from sub-Saharan Africa. The issue of human genetic variation is be similar to the imprecise and changeable Of course, in US popular culture, people inevitably a sensitive one, because people’s categories that the contemporary society who speak Spanish or related languages, lives are shaped and constrained by the uses for race28 (TABLE 1). This means that no Hispanics, are coming to be understood as labels that are used to describe them. scientist (or anyone else) should trust their parallel to other traditional minority groups Members of both the disability rights and intuition about race labels. in the United States that have been defined racial equalities movements have com- An example of the constant slippage of as races, such as African Americans and plained that at least some ways of talking race terms is provided by Nicholas Wade, Native Americans. So, Hispanics are now about particular instances or patterns of who was a strong journalistic propagator being identified as a race in common human genetic variation encourage dis- of Neil Risch’s claim that there are five parlance. This is just the most recent criminatory attitudes, and some empirical major human races that are defined by shift-point in the historical variability of evidence suggests these concerns are well genetic clusters, specifically, Africans, the groupings that scientists and lay people founded25. Although it is not possible to Caucasians, Asians, Pacific Islanders, alike have classified as races through time26. rehearse all of the data on this complicated and Native Americans. However, when Thus, one should use the term race only and loaded topic here, the evidence is reporting on recent diabetes research, after familiarizing oneself with the general strong enough to suggest that one should Wade includes as his list of races, “African- issues involved30–32, and with all of the not use the term ‘race’ or classify humans Americans, Latinos, American Indians, and details of the specific case of population into groups casually. Human genetic varia- Asian-Americans.”29 The social grouping variation. Adopting newer frames such as tion is clinal across the globe (reflecting the we call Hispanics is not one of Risch et al.’ s ecotypes, populations or ancestry might be flow of immigrants out from Africa), with categories, and it does not share a stable, more promising for specific instances, but strong regional variations resulting from historically deep genetic cluster. In the using these alternatives will still require climatic and geographical factors. Variation South-Western United States, most rigour and caution that can be overridden is also locally brecciated. These crosscutting Hispanics have a mixture of ancestors by the power of folk concepts of race. patterns of variation do not match up well who were indigenous to the Americas The issue of labelling individuals who with the social groupings that people assign and who came from Spain and Portugal have particular genetic variations is equally to race, which are constantly changing whereas, in the South-Eastern United sensitive and consequential. Few people through recorded history26,27. We have States, Hispanic ancestry includes many today would use the term ‘mutant’ in public shown that the intuitive categories for racial people who came from the Caribbean to describe someone with such a variation
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Table 2 | Crib sheet for talking genetics with reporters Issue Avoid? Consider Process Just picking up the phone and chatting Know the slant the reporter is likely to take; write out your key points in lay language; test it out on ‘readability’ ratings and lay people Hype Effusive enthusiasm; predictions of 10–15 years Describe technical and social roadblocks; highlight the potential for findings to to applications be overturned Determinism The ‘genes win!’ frame; the terms ‘heritability’, The ‘gene–environment interaction’ frame; the terms ‘gene–environment pairs’, ‘gene for’ and ‘variant gene’ ‘version of a gene’, ‘risk version of a gene’ or ‘risk-increasing version of a gene’ Discrimination Race labels drawn from lay-based intuitions; Carefully and precisely delineated ‘populations’, ‘ecotypes’ or ‘ancestries’; terms such as ‘mutant’, ‘mutation’, ‘sickle-cell terms such as ‘change in a gene’, ‘genetic change’, ‘people with the (…) victim’, ‘sickle-cell carrier’, “dwarf,” etc. genotype’ or ‘people with (…)’
but, as we have shown, the term ‘mutation’ writing out exactly the message one wants only brief pointers; see TABLE 2). Ongoing carries a similar negative resonance for to convey to a journalist in four or five research is delineating what information lay people33. There is simply no reason sentences might be the most effective about genetics consumers want and for this scientific term to be used in com- preparation. Part of the writing task will need35,36. Furthermore, a large body of municating with the public, for whom it include choosing figures of speech that research is developing in domains such as connotes the monsters of science fiction. quickly and clearly convey the core ideas. health, risk, science communication, health Medical geneticists have defended the use To ensure that one’s metaphorical and marketing, epidemiology and elsewhere of the term on the grounds that it is the other choices do not convey unintended that can provide useful additional guidance accurate term; however, there are many meanings, it is desirable to try out one’s towards effective communication about terms that are accurate to scientists that paragraph on a couple of non-scientists to genetics. For example, a variety of research are not used in the parlance of the general see what they make of it. Sometimes this suggests that using proportions instead of public (for example, ‘allele’ or ‘linkage can be usefully done through the internet percentages, or small denominators instead analysis’) because they do not communicate for a broad response but, unless one knows of large denominators, can help people to effectively. Medical geneticists resist the the background of one’s internet interact- understand frequency relations37, and sys- use of alternative terms such as ‘genetic ants well, it should also be done with local tematic biases in gauging or responding to change’, ‘version of a gene’ or ‘genetic vari- individuals whom one knows are likely to risks are increasingly well understood38,39. ation’ because they allege that these terms be members of the target audience. After The challenges that are faced in com- do not carry the negative connotation of an trying out one’s set-piece and ensuring that municating about genetics with lay people undesired change. However, it is exactly the it communicates effectively, there are some are constantly changing as geneticists desirability of the change that is in dispute things one can do to increase the chance invent new methodologies and new in many cases, especially with hereditary that the journalist’s frame won’t simply findings. Notably missing from our cur- deafness and small stature, where at least swamp what you believe needs to be said. rent understandings are research-based some people with these genetic variations Journalists prefer phone interviews recommendations about what lay people maintain that they are not undesirable because they are fluid and interactive, make of complex visual data, such as those genotypes. Moreover, outside of and before and give the journalist substantial control produced by gene expression studies using the dominance of medical genetics in the over the record of what is said. Wherever microarrays. Perhaps more immediately genetics community, ‘mutation’ among sci- possible, insisting on written questions important will be research that generates entists did not mean a deleterious change in and responses helps the interviewee to recommendations on how to communicate DNA; it simply meant a change in DNA34. focus the interview on what they want the meaning of personal genetic tests that The particular impacts of the use of the to communicate. Occasionally, as a condi- involve multiple contributing alleles for phrase ‘genetic change’ instead of ‘muta- tion of being interviewed, one can also gain common diseases. Given the difficulties tion’ in any given case is, of course, only an agreement to see the copy before it is involved in explaining the implications of an example of the larger framework to be submitted, so that one has a chance to cor- a single genetic test, communicating the sought, which is to think and speak about rect any faulty interpretations. Finally, even implications of having, for example, two all human beings as people with a range of after publication, if a reporter makes an risk-conferring alleles and two non-risk genotypes that manifest themselves in an error or uses an inappropriate frame, the conferring alleles for hypertension or even greater range of phenotypes, rather reporter should be told that. In some cases, skin cancer or osteoporosis will certainly than reducing individuals to a disease the reporter’s editor might also benefit be challenging. Grounds for hope arise or physical condition such as ‘sickle-cell from being informed of serious or system- from the willingness of many journalists victims’ and ‘dwarfs’, or further reducing atic errors, especially when more than one to improve their ability to communicate them to their DNA: ‘sickle-cell carriers’ or interviewee agrees that there are problems about genetics in an effective fashion. ‘BRCA1 positives’. in the reporting. Should geneticists themselves do any less? Celeste M. Condit is at the Department of Speech Procedural recommendations Conclusion Communication, 110 Terrell Hall, University of Georgia, Translating technical vocabularies into lay The challenges involved in talking to Athens, Georgia 30602. parlance is not an easy task, nor will it ever reporters cannot be reduced to a simple e-mail: [email protected] be perfectly achieved. Given the difficulties, formula (this Perspective has provided doi:10.1038/nrg2201
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1. Bubela, T. M. & Caulfield, T. A. Do the print media 19. Carey, J. The $600 million horse race. Business Week 34. Condit, C. M., Achter, P. J., Lauer, I. & Sefcovic, E. ‘hype’ genetic research? A comparison of newspaper 68 (23 August 1993). The changing meanings of ‘mutation’: a contextualized stories and peer-reviewed research papers. CMAJ 20. Sun News Services. Entrepreneurs: is it in the genes? study of public discourse. Hum. Mutat. 19, 69–75 170, 1399–1407 (2004). The Toronto Sun C9 (7 June 2006). (2002). 2. Lynch, J. & Condit, C. Genes and race in the news: 21. Wade, N. Study finds genetic link between intelligence 35. Mountcastle-Shah, E. et al. Assessing mass media a test of competing theories of news coverage. and size of some regions of the brain. The New York reporting of disease-related genetic discoveries. Am. J. Health Behav. 30, 125–135 (2006). Times A1, 15 (5 November 2001). Sci. Commun. 24, 458–478 (2003). 3. Nelkin, D. Selling science: how the press covers 22. Bates, B. R., Templeton, A., Achter, P. J., 36. Shepperd, S. et al. DISCERN-Genetics: quality criteria science and technology (W. H. Freeman, New York, Harris, T. M. & Condit, C. M. What does ‘a gene for information on genetic testing. Eur. J. Hum. Genet. 1995). for heart disease’ mean? Am. J. Med. Genet. 14, 1179–1188 (2006). 4. Wilcox, S. A. Cultural context and the conventions of 119A, 156–161 (2003). 37. Hoffrage, U., Lindsey, S., Hertwig, R. & Gigerenzer, G. science journalism: drama and contradiction in media 23. Singer, E., Corning, A. & Lamias, M. The polls — Communicating statistical information. Science 290, coverage of biological ideas about sexuality. Crit. Stud. trends: genetic testing, engineering, and therapy. 2261–2262 (2000). Media Commun. 20, 225–247 (2003). Public Opin. Q. 62, 633–664 (1998). 38. Kahlor, L., Dunwoody, S. & Griffin, R. J. Attributions in 5. Bowman, L. Reformulating objectivity. Journalism Stud. 24. Condit, C. et al. Low-income Americans’ explanations of risk estimates. Public Underst. Sci. 11, 7, 628–643 (2006). understandings of the relationship of genes 243–257 (2002). 6. Hafez, K. Journalism ethics revisited: a comparison of and behavior in producing health outcomes. 39. Rothman, A. J. & Kivniemi, M. T. Treating people with ethics codes in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, American Society for Human Genetics 56th Annual information: an analysis and review of approaches to and Muslim Asia. Polit. Commun. 19, 225–220 (2002). Meeting, New Orleans, USA. Abstr. 966B, 191 communicating health risk information. J. Natl Cancer 7. Kaplan, R. L., The news about new institutionalism: (2006). Inst. 25, 44–51 (1999). journalism’s ethic of objectivity and its political origins. 25. Condit, C. & Bates, B. How lay people respond to 40. Delgado, R. & Stefancic, J. (Eds) Critical White Studies, Polit. Commun. 23, 173–185 (2006). messages about genetics, health, and race. Looking Behind the Mirror (Temple Univ. Press, 8. Tuchman, G. Objectivity as strategic ritual: an Clin. Genet. 68, 97–105 (2005). Philadelphia, 1997). examination of newsmen’s notions of objectivity. 26. Marks, J. Human Biodiversity: Genes, Race, and 41. Condit, C. M., Templeton, A., Bates, B. R., Am. J. Sociol. 77, 670–673 (1972). History (Aldine de Gruyter, New York, 1995). Bevan, J. L. & Harris, T. M. Attitudinal barriers to 9. Entman, R. M. Framing: towards clarification of a 27. Lee, S. S., Mountain J. & Koenig B, A. The meanings delivery of race-targeted pharmacogenomics fractured paradigm. J. Commun. 43, 51–85 (1993). of “race” in the new genomics: implications for health among informed lay persons. Genet. Med. 5, 10. Horowitz, A. V. Media portrayals and health disparities research. Yale J. Health Policy Law Ethic. 1, 385–392 (2003). inequalities: a case study of characterizations of 33–75 (2001). gene–environment interaction. J. Gerontol. B Psychol. 28. Condit, C. M. ‘Race’ is not a scientific concept: Acknowledgements: Sci. Soc. Sci. 60, S48–S52 (2005). alternative directions. la ‘race’ n’est pas un concept The research on lay understandings of gene–environment 11. Caspi, A., Sugden, K., Moffitt, T. E., Taylor, A., scientifique: quelles sont les alternatives? interaction is supported by the US National Institutes of Craig, I. W., Harrington, H. L. et al. Influence of life L’observatoire de la génétique 24 [online],
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