Covering the Latest Scientific News—With a European Twist

The location of a Science news bureau in Europe extends the breadth of the magazine's news coverage. "We cover a huge territory that tends to be more pan-Europe, stretching from the former Soviet Union to the Middle East and Western Europe, with a focus on areas of global interest and conflict," says Richard Stone, the news editor in the Cambridge office. The news team includes deputy news editor Dan Clery in the United Kingdom, Paris correspondent Michael Balter, Berlin correspondent Gretchen Vogel, and a number of freelancers.

Richard Stone, Julia Day, Adam Bostanci

"We are always looking for labs or research scientists who are so compelling they transcend national boundaries," says Stone, who feels that his outsider's perspective as an American helps ensure that his team's contributions will appeal to readers both inside and outside Europe guide the weekly selection from becoming too narrowly focused.

Recently the Science news staff has written about cutting-edge Israeli stem cell research, unusually high life expectancies among men on the island of Sardinia, the smuggling of nuclear materials, and collaborations between Islamic scientists and the western world.

While operating the international news desk, Stone has not forgotten that he got his break in the news business from a 1991 internship at Science in Washington, DC. Here in Cambridge, he has started a six-month news internship program, gearing it exclusively for young European science writers. Interns such as Adam Bostanci, who comes from Germany, are responsible for covering British science policy and participate in daily ScienceNow discussions. "They are full-fledged members of the writing team," Stone says.

—Lisa Onaga

17 June 2002

For more information, read related articles:

• Growing Presence in Europe for Science, AAAS
• Editors in UK Make Science More Accessible
• Helping Young Scientists Get Started: Science's Next Wave
• Promoting Science and AAAS from a Global Perspective