Science journalism

Christopher Reddy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has an opinion piece in the August 25th Wall Street Journal, pertaining to media coverage of the Deepwater Horizon's subsurface oil plume. Although the situation is arguably more complex and important than the Kilimanjaro retreating glacier story, I find it to be an interesting analog in terms of scientist's differing findings, their interaction with journalists, and how the story is conveyed by the media. Reddy suggests that "...it is incumbent on scientists and journalists to keep the results in perspective" [especially those which are preliminary] "and refrain from veering into misleading waters."