SCIENCE AND

TECHNOLOGY
JOURNALISM
WHAT IS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
WRITING?

•Science and Technology Journalism

•It can be difficult to write simple science news stories. Complex ideas must be ‘translated’ into plain and
simple text. Studies that have taken years to conduct must also be synthesized down into punchy, short
sentences. For a science journalist, these can be tricky challenges to navigate.
HOW TO WRITE SIMPLE SCIENCE NEWS
STORIES?

•Simple science tip: Keep your audience in mind

•It is important when you write simple science news to keep your audience in mind. Be mindful that most
people do not study science after school – or the level at which it is compulsory. So, readers might not be
familiar with scientific terms. For those who did study a field of science, they might not be familiar with the
technical language of different fields.
•Joseph Pulitzer, who is often considered the grandfather of journalism, had simplicity in mind when he
said: “Put it before them so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will
remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light.”
HOW TO WRITE SIMPLE SCIENCE NEWS
STORIES?

•Simple science tip: Make sure you understand the information

•Complexity creeps into science stories when writers are unclear about the science itself. So, before your
start to write simple science news, make sure you understand the information.
•As we say in the Script course, you can only translate what you have understood. Make sure you have done
your background reading and relevant research before starting to write a science story. Talk to scientists to
gain knowledge around the subject. Keep asking questions until you understand the issues clearly before
‘translating’ it into news.
HOW TO WRITE SIMPLE SCIENCE NEWS
STORIES?
•Simple science tip: Use a simple outline
•To write simple science news stories, it helps to create a simple outline before you start. The oldest and
most used structure in news is the inverted pyramid. This is where you start with the most important facts
first. Try fitting as many of the who, what, why, when and how in the first sentence or paragraph as
possible.
•Then follow with the next most important facts, and then the next. Keep going until you have covered the
main points of your story but aim to keep the story as short as possible. Most news stories are between 500-
800 words.
•To learn more about the inverted pyramid, see the Science communication skills for journalists Script
course.
HOW TO WRITE SIMPLE SCIENCE NEWS
STORIES?
•Simple science tip: Use simple language
•When writing write simple science news it is vital to use simple language. when writing a science news story. 
In our online Script course, we explain how the goal of a journalist is to collect information from various sources, package it
accurately and transmit it to their audience.
•The audience receives the information through a medium – a written article, a podcast or a video. They then interpret that
information and act upon it. Any barrier along this chain such as complex jargon or technical language acts as a hurdle to
this process. It can disrupt clear communication as well as any goals you might have from the story.
•Keep in mind that you will be communicating through your story with non-specialists. Avoid using jargon. Replace it with
everyday phrases and words. For example, a CNN story used the phrase “remnants of the virus” instead of “RNA
fragments”.
•Explain technical terms if you must use them. the International Journalists’ Network created this handy list of medical terms
 that you are likely to come across when reporting on COVID-19. It can help you in interpreting and simplifying the terms.
ACTIVITY

•Even the biggest news outlets write simple science news. It might surprise you to learn that many news
outlets write to a reading age of around 12. If you are unsure whether your writing is simple enough, use
readability checkers like Readable. They give reading age scores that give an indication of how difficult
your writing is to read and understand.
•And remember that simple does not mean simplistic. As we point out in the Script course, ‘
simple’ means the story can be understood easily. ‘Simplistic’ means it is not thorough. A thorough story
can use simple language if it presents information and views from multiple sources, interprets the facts and
explains the likely outcomes.

Look for a topic in your community that is related to

science or that uses technology and write a sci-tech news.