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Fellowships to support promising young science reporters from developing
regions of the world were first established by AAAS thanks to a generous
seed grant from the William
T. Golden Endowment Fund for Program Innovation.
During its first year, the program brought 10 young Chinese reporters,
as well as one from South Africa, and another from Brazil to cover
the 2004 AAAS Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington.
A second year of the program — administered by AAAS and its
editorially independent Web site for reporters, EurekAlert!
— was made possible through the generosity of The Global Alliance
for Vaccines & Immunization (GAVI), The Vaccine Fund and the Rotavirus
Vaccine Program (RVP), an affiliate of PATH. Reporters from Africa
participated in the 2005 AAAS Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.
Three outstanding young science reporters from Mexico, Chile and
Brazil have been selected to receive fellowships to attend and report
on the 2006 AAAS Annual Meeting in St. Louis, Missouri. Check back
for further details. The 2006 fellowships are being funded by EurekAlert!,
in cooperation with AAAS.
The 2006 winners will be celebrated during a special press party
at The Orpheum Theater in St. Louis, Missouri, on Saturday, 18 February,
from 8:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. This event is open only to those wearing
the 2006 AAAS Annual Meeting press badge. The event is being co-hosted
by the International
Science Writers Association and the World
Federation of Science Journalists. Those eligible for press registration
to the Annual Meeting are urged to register
in advance.
Ten outstanding young Chinese reporters received the first ever AAAS
Fellowships for Reporters in Developing Regions:
Li Hujun, Freelancer (Sina.com and Nanfang Zhoumo)
Yimin Ding, China Features
Xinyu Zhou, China Youth Daily
Yan Liang, Xinhua News
Lei Du, Freelancer (Nanfang Zhoumo)
He Sheng, China Daily
Yan Yan, Reuters TV Beijing
Liu Li, Science and Technology Daily
Zhang Bin, Jiefang Daily Group
Lu Yi (Luo Yanning), Lifeweek
Winning entries chronicled researchers' frantic efforts to combat
the SARS virus; the return of talented, established Chinese scientists
to the mainland; Chinese stem-cell research; nanotechnology advances;
and more. Reports by the winning Fellowship recipients were disseminated
by such diverse media outlets as Reuters Television of Beijing; Nanfang
Zhoumo; China Youth Daily; and Xinhua News,
among others.
“The 10 winning Fellowship recipients represent a strong balance
of national and regional media outlets, as well as broadcast, print,
online, trade and mainstream media outlets, and thus, truly reflect
science journalism throughout China as a whole,” said Shere
Abbott, AAAS's Chief International Officer. “Through this new
program, AAAS seeks to encourage the accomplishments of promising
young journalists who are accurately conveying scientific issues of
critical importance to the public — from sustainable development
to vaccine research.”
“We were surprised and delighted by the high quality of submissions
received in the first year of this program,” said AAAS CEO Alan
I. Leshner, executive publisher of the journal, Science.
“Selecting 10 finalists proved challenging because all of the
submissions showed merit, and each of the applicants should feel tremendously
encouraged by their accomplishments within the field of science journalism.
The level of participation in this new Fellowship program speaks volumes
about Chinese journalists’ level of dedication and commitment
to their craft. We were honored by the participation of many outstanding
young reporters.”
“The emergence of China as a major scientific and technical
force suggests that the country has the potential to become the world's
largest market for science news,” said James Cornell, president
of the International Science Writers Association.
“This rapid social development underlines the need for a cadre
of trained, informed and independent journalists who can interpret
the results of research, track the impact of new technologies and
represent the public interest,” said ISWA's Cornell, an advisor
to the program, along with the National Association of Science Writers
and the AAAS Committee on Public Understanding of Science and Technology.
“Ideally, the AAAS Fellows, by sharing the experiences of their
non-Chinese counterparts in the stimulating and dynamic environment
of the annual meeting in Seattle, will find new and innovative ways
for communicating science and technology when they return home.”
The Fellowships competition was open this year to young Chinese reporters
submitting original print or broadcast stories on science or technology
issues. Winners were invited to attend and cover the 2004 AAAS Annual
Meeting in Seattle, with room, lodging and meal costs covered by AAAS.
Their coverage of the Meeting was published in a new multi-language
portal on EurekAlert!.
Judging the 2004 year entries were:
- Anthony Kuhn, reporter for Newsweek’s Beijing
Bureau;
- Benjamin Read, assistant professor within the Department of Political
Science at the University of Iowa;
- and Tai Zixue, a member of the communication faculty at Southern
Illinois University at Edwardsville.
Much additional advice and encouragement for the program was provided
by numerous individuals and organizations. “We’re deeply
grateful to everyone who sent a tip, explained Chinese journalism
conventions to us, or helped us to recruit submissions,” Leshner
said.
The winners of the 2005 Fellowships for Reporters from Africa were:
- Celeste Tema, South African Broadcasting Corporation
Tema has worked as a radio reporter for the past seven years, and
has specialized in science for the past two years. Her stories are
translated into South Africa's eleven official languages and broadcast
throughout the country.
- Mzati Nkolokosa, The Nation, Malawi
Nkolokosa, who has three years of experience as a reporter, aspires
to specialize in health reporting, especially in the area of HIV/AIDS.
He cites “lack of resources and training” as one of
the greatest challenges to his career.
- Zablon Odhiambro, Biosafety News, Kenya
Odhiambro, who has been working as a science reporter for the past
five years, hopes that he can help to “alleviate global problems”
by responsibly reporting science and technology developments throughout
Africa.
- Nurat Miquidade, Radio Mozambique
Miquidade has worked as a radio reporter for nine years. Her stories
are broadcast in Portuguese throughout Mozambique.
- Pape Sambe Boubacar, Jeune Afrique Economie, Senegal
Boubacar writes for the French-language magazine Jeune Afrique
Economie, where he covers science and health, among other
topics.
The winners received support to travel to Washington, DC, from 17
February until 21 February, to report and train at the 2005 AAAS Annual
Meeting, America’s largest general science conference. The winners’
coverage of the 2005 AAAS Annual Meeting was posted to
EurekAlert!'s multi-language portal.
Airfare, hotel costs, meals and other travel expenses were fully
covered by the AAAS fellowships, sponsored by GAVI, PATH and The Vaccine
Fund. Some 1,200 press registrants from around the world covered the
AAAS Meeting.
A seed grant from the William
T. Golden Endowment Fund for Program Innovation made it possible
for AAAS to launch this program, which provides networking opportunities
and travel funds for science reporters from regions where they may
otherwise receive little support.
In 2005, The Global Alliance for Vaccines & Immunization (GAVI),
The Vaccine Fund and the Rotavirus Vaccine Program (RVP), an affiliate
of PATH, supported a second year of the program. EurekAlert!,
in conjunction with AAAS, is sponsoring the 2006 program.
AAAS is currently seeking a four-year commitment to support 10 fellowship
recipients per year, but we also welcome offers of support for one
or more recipients per year.
For further details, including inspiring testimonials from fellowship
recipients, please contact Ginger Pinholster in the AAAS Office of
Public Programs, via email
or telephone at (202) 326-6421.
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