By Jocelyn Rockhold
Two years before the COVID pandemic struck the United States and concerns about misinformation and science literacy spread, the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) received a donation from local biochemist Mick Hitchcock. This donation would fund the creation of a new science communication initiative, The Hitchcock Project, housed at the Reynolds School of Journalism.
The Hitchcock Project gives students the opportunity to present scientific topics in creative and story-based forms. Simply put, student science journalism through The Hitchcock Project is making science more accessible to readers by breaking down complex information into digestible content.
“I came from another science organization before I came to UNR, so I know that it’s a recognized problem within the sciences,” said Kelsey Fitzgerald, a professor of practice at the Reynolds School of Journalism. “We need to do a better job of communicating research findings and making sure that the public is aware of the current status of these issues.”
Since the launch of The Hitchcock Project, students have covered topics such as the long-term effects of repeated concussions, the status on Nevada’s COVID herd immunity, and the impact of climate change on wildfires.
Students can get involved with The Hitchcock Project in a variety of ways, including courses, internships, and research assistant positions. They have the option to take a handful of science communication courses, ranging from Health Advertising and Marketing to Data Journalism. Some student-produced pieces are created through these courses, but other students also contribute as graduate research assistants or interns. Student-produced content is published on The Hitchcock Project website, but some student work is also hosted through KUNR, the NPR-affiliated radio station with which students complete internships.
“It's been a really great experience for the students who've been involved with [KUNR], just to work with some really good reporters and get some practice doing audio reporting,” said Fitzgerald. “I think it’s also helpful to the station as far as getting some additional help and training people who hopefully will continue working with them in the future.”
The Hitchcock Project has direct ties to the local science community as well, as the project was recently approached by the scientists working on a Lake Tahoe water clarity project. These scientists asked for assistance on creating accessible content to show their findings.
“[The researchers] have been doing all this great research in the basin and the majority of their research findings are packaged into 100 page scientific reports that are full of important information, but are not packaged in a way that members of the general public are likely to pick them up and read,” said Fitzgerald. “They asked us to work with them this semester on creating a story map, an ArcGIS based story map, to kind of tell the story of what they're learning and why it's important.”
Students also complete “explainers” through a motion graphics course, some of which are published on The Hitchcock Project website. “Explainers” are motion graphics which explain a scientific topic in a simple and accurate visual format. The Hitchcock Project hopes to expand student work in motion graphics and other visuals to better educate the public about issues in science, especially in regards to climate change and the local environment.
“I think one of the core ideas behind the project is the idea of visual or visualizing science,” said Fitzgerald, “and the idea that we need to think of different ways to tell science stories besides just the sort of traditional print journalism.”