Contested science communication: Representations of scientists and their science in newspaper articles and the associated comment sections.

ABSTRACT: This qualitative study uses inductive thematic analysis to investigate how journalists and their readers perceive scientists. The data-driven approach was applied to 84 articles (reporting on the contested science issues of climate change, vaccines, or genetically modified organisms (GMOs)) and their associated comment sections. Two dominant groups were observed: the pro-science group (consisting of commentators and journalists) and the contra-science group (nearly exclusively commentators). The identified themes show that both groups represent scientists and their science in a particular and similar way across the three contested science topics. These representations are used to justify both support and opposition (e.g., each group refers to scientists' motives; however, they express this

SUBMITTER: Donois KK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12274558 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature