Applications are invited for the 2012 The Media course will be held from October 14–17, 2012, at the Bolger Center in Potomac, Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC, and minutes from the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD.
The course analyzes the opportunities and challenges of communicating medical research results to the public. This course emphasizes an evidence-based approach and re-examines common beliefs about medicine. Participants will leave with a better understanding of how to interpret and evaluate research findings as well as how to select stories that hold meaning for the public and how to place a science story in its appropriate context.
There is no fee for the course and accommodations will be provided. Participants will be responsible for transportation costs to the Washington DC, are, including ground transportation to and from the airport.
Space is limited and priority will be given to credentialed, working health journalists in the mass media. Attendees should be enthusiastic to develop skills and knowledge necessary for good medical science reporting but need not have extensive experience or background in medical journalism.
The National Institutes of Health’s Office of Disease Prevention (ODP) presents an annual training opportunity to help develop journalists’ and editors’ ability to evaluate and report on medical research. The course curriculum builds on the best of prior years’ offerings to create an intensive learning experience with hands-on application.
The course will examine the challenges and opportunities inherent in the process of communicating the results of medical research to the public. Stressing an evidence-based approach and re-examining intuitive beliefs about medicine, the course will prepare participants for the crucial task of interpreting and evaluating research findings, including understanding statistics, selecting stories which hold meaningful messages for the public, and placing them in the appropriate context.
The course faculty includes experts in medical research and medical journalism. Sessions will be interactive with hands-on opportunities to apply lessons learned, and will incorporate journalists’ special perspectives on the public’s need for useful medical knowledge.
Applications are invited from journalists whose primary audience is the general public. Applicants may produce news stories about health or healthcare for newspapers, magazines, or newsletters; television or radio; or on-line media. Participants should be eager to develop skills and knowledge necessary for good medical and health reporting.
Application deadline is Friday, June 1, 2012, at 5 pm eastern time.
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