You finished a research study and have results to share? Congrats! You probably want to share it with as many people as possible: your boss, other scientists, maybe the patent office, politicians, decision makers, journalists, the public?
Who you want to reach determines how the results are shared.
I learned about a phrase coined by M. McLuhan: “The medium is the message: a message is the change of scale or pace or pattern that a new invention or innovation introduces into human affairs.” The idea is that I don’t just want to transmit information: the hope is that when people hear the message, this will change something for them. And the same message will be perceived very differently depending on how and where it is being shared.
As scientists, the common medium we use to share our findings are scientific papers. For our study, we published a scientific paper about our results on infanticide in mammals because we were hoping that this would lead to changes in how other scientists conduct their research. They might start to look at a new question, rely on our findings for the rationale for their study, consider additional factors we discussed, rely on a new method, or interpret their results in a different way. Scientific articles, the medium to reach other scientists, therefore focus on including hypotheses, a description of the methods, include figures, and a discussion linking the findings to a broader literature. The format matches what we hope to change in the readers.
The same results were portrayed very differently in the boulevard press. There, information is often presented to create an emotional reaction and gossip. The focus is on the sensationalised human aspect, rather than specific details. Here, the medium also matches with what is hoped to be achieved.
So, what is the purpose of the medium of the press release?
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We thought that the results of our study could be of interest to many people: they deal with sex and violence. We found that in several mammalian species the greatest risk for infants come from others of their own species. The reversible nature of male infanticide reveals how sexual conflict can lead to repeated evolution of male strategies and female counter-strategies. |
The action that is hoped for by writing and sharing a press release is that journalists will report on the study. Journalists have access to share the study in ways I don’t have. They also have specialised skills to frame the findings in particular ways that can reach other audience, they are effective in phrasing information for other media forms. Journalists often also add context to studies, for example by reaching out and interviewing other scientists. In addition though, the press release is also a way to summarize the main findings for a general audience.
So the important bit is to figure out the message you want to transmit via your medium to your particular audience. Find out in part 2 how to narrow down your message.