Escape from the Ivory Tower
A Guide to Making Your Science Matter
272 pages
6 x 9
24 illustrations
Book Description
Most scientists and researchers aren’t prepared to talk to the press or to policymakers—or to deal with backlash. Many researchers have the horror stories to prove it. What’s clear, according to Nancy Baron, is that scientists, journalists and public policymakers come from different cultures. They follow different sets of rules, pursue different goals, and speak their own language. To effectively reach journalists and public officials, scientists need to learn new skills and rules of engagement. No matter what your specialty, the keys to success are clear thinking, knowing what you want to say, understanding your audience, and using everyday language to get your main points across.
In this practical and entertaining guide to communicating science, Baron explains how to engage your audience and explain why a particular finding matters. She explores how to ace your interview, promote a paper, enter the political fray, and use new media to connect with your audience. The book includes advice from journalists, decision makers, new media experts, bloggers and some of the thousands of scientists who have participated in her communication workshops. Many of the researchers she has worked with have gone on to become well-known spokespeople for science-related issues. Baron and her protégées describe the risks and rewards of “speaking up,” how to deal with criticism, and the link between communications and leadership. The final chapter, ‘Leading the Way’ offers guidance to scientists who want to become agents of change and make your science matter. Whether you are an absolute beginner or a seasoned veteran looking to hone your skills, Escape From the Ivory Tower can help make your science understood, appreciated and perhaps acted upon.
Review Quotes
"No one understands scientists the way Nancy Baron does. This book helps connect the worlds of science, journalism, and policy in very entertaining and insightful ways. If you care about linking science with action, this is the book to read."
Pat Matson , Scientific Director of the Leopold Leadership Program
"By challenging scientists to find and use their own voice, Nancy Baron has done more than anyone in the last decade to raise public awareness about our imperiled oceans. Her fingerprints can be found on nearly every preeminent paper and salient symposium. Not since Sir Peter Medawar published the classic Advice to a Young Scientist has so much wisdom been shared so concisely. Whether you are a scientist or writer, young or old, you don't have to read this book—unless you are committed to saving our blue planet."
Larry Crowder, Director, Duke Center for Marine Conservation
"At last! The definitive manual on communicating science effectively in an era of environmental change—Baron's book provides the practical tools to make a difference."
Diana Wall, Director, School of Global Environmental Sustainability
"In our age of information overload it is easy for research to disappear without trace. If you want yours to get noticed, read Nancy Baron's excellent guide."
Callum Roberts, Professor of Marine Conservation, University of York
"Nancy Baron has been helping scientists talk to the media and to their public patrons for a decade…Her extraordinary leadership has changed the lives of young scientists; here she has produced a book that will help both senior scientists and their students…to deal with journalists, interviewers, the Rotary Club, and even Congressional committees."
Donald Kennedy, Editor of "Science" magazine 2000-2008, Commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration
"Nancy Baron is a master of the art of science communication. Escape from the Ivory Tower is essential reading for scientists who want their work understood by the public and decision makers."
Natasha Loder, science and technology correspondent, "The Economist"
"[Readers will] be grateful for the investment when they can pull... [the] book off the shelf in times of need. Aspiring journalists and public information officers will also find valuable insights into scientific culture and the way their own work is perceived... Escape from the Ivory Tower should be embraced by a broad scientific audience; it's impossible to predict when...you may be jolted out of your comfort zone and forced to convince the world that your data matter."
American Scientist
"In the world of science we sometimes forget that a book can be an easy, pleasant read and still teach us quite a bit. Nancy Baron knows that, and she has delivered that book. The result is unlike anything you've read before—and it is something you need to begin reading now. This is not a book for your bookshelf. It is a book for your backpack, your briefcase, your graduate students, and the trunk of your car...This is a book to be read, enjoyed, and dogeared— assuming, of course, you want your science to matter."
BioScience
"Overall, this book is valuable and a worthwhile read for marine scientists. Almost all of us can improve our outreach efforts... Escape from the Ivory Tower has helpful hints for all of us interested in various levels of outreach."
Oceanography
"Even if you believe that you will never have an occasion to share your science beyond your laboratory or the kitchen table, this book may persuade you otherwise. Consider adding it to your library as an investment to bring credible science to public discourse."
Lab Matters
"I highly recommend the book as a starting point for any scientist interested in engaging the public. Baron's insight into both ends of scientific communication offers a helpful starting point for anyone interested in more effective communication with the public or with scientists."
Earthzine
"...I tend to go back to it again and again—like a cookbook you would never expect to memorize but use frequently—as I try to craft clear messages for press releases, prepare for radio interviews, or speak to policymakers about wildlife health issues."
Wildlife Professional
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Foreword \ Donald Kennedy
PART I. The Scientist Communicator
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2.The Decision to Speak Out
PART II. A Clash of Cultures
Chapter 3.What You Need to Know about Journalists
Chapter 4.Tell Me a Story: What Journalists Want from You
Chapter 5.The Changing World of the Media
Chapter 6.What You Need to Know about Policymakers
Chapter 7. Inform My Decision: What Policymakers Want from You
PART III. The How-To Toolkit
Chapter 8. Deliver a Clear Message
Chapter 9.Ace Your Interview
Chapter 10. Fine-Tune for Radio and Television
Chapter 11. Reach out Instead of Waiting
Chapter 12. Promote a Paper
Chapter 13. Enter the Political Fray
PART IV. Becoming an Agent of Change
Chapter 14. After the Splash, the Backlash
Chapter 15. Leading the Way: Nine Steps to Success
References
Index
