Knight Science Journalism @ MIT

There’s no substitute for meeting other science journalists and editors in person.
Looking to make more connections in the field? Here are 15 societies and conferences you should know about: https://ksj.mit.edu/resource/being-a-science-journalist/networking/

For reporters covering health and health science, here are some resources to bookmark:

What's in weed these days?
ICYMI: Teresa Carr (KSJ '18) answered questions on Reddit about her investigation in to regulation of contamination and THC level reporting in the legal marijuana sector. undark.org/2025/07/16/c...

People with ADHD may have an underappreciated advantage: Hypercuriosity ADHD is officially a disorder of deficits in attention, behavior and focus. But patients point out upsides, like curiosity. Research is now catching up.

“The goal isn’t to romanticize ADHD. It’s to ensure that when we’re supporting people with this condition, we’re seeing the whole person, not just the problems.” Reporting by Sujata Gupta, 2018 KSJ fellow

The powerful connection between data and story Part one of a two part essay on realizing the full potential of data journalism.

"...a journalist looking at data in search of a story has many advantages." 
@chriscmooney.bsky.social, 2010 KSJ fellow and Pulitzer Prize-winning climate reporter, shares on his Substack how he digs through data to find narrative.

America’s Overheated Landfills Have Been Making People Sick Beneath layers of waste, landfills around the US have been reaching scorching temperatures, spewing toxic gases and geysers of trash juice.

Literal "hot garbage." @mslaurabliss.bsky.social (KSJ '23) and Rachael Dottle's reporting on US landfills is excellent, but what they found stinks
www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202... (article from July)

“Our girls are still dead”: Camp Mystic parents pushed for laws to protect kids at camp. But their pain remains. Two dads helped lead Camp Mystic parents to advocate for new camp rules in the Texas Legislature. What they wanted most was to have their daughters back.

“Our girls are still dead”: Camp Mystic parents successfully pushed for laws to protect kids at camp. But too late to save their own children. Beautifully told story by former @ksjatmit.bsky.social fellow @emfoxhall.bsky.social via @texastribune.org

Healthwire Investigating industry's impact on our health and future generations.

"A look at the ways companies damage our health—and that of future generations."
@pamelawrites.bsky.social (KSJ '24) helped launch Healthwire to bring the latest research on commercial determinants of health to a mainstream audience. @usrighttoknow.bsky.social 

Have you bookmarked the KSJ Science Editing Handbook yet? The Handbook is written by some of the most widely celebrated science editors and reporters working today (and it's free).

Available for free download in 7 languages at https://ksjhandbook.org/

‘Sick to My Stomach’: Trump Distorts Facts on Autism, Tylenol, and Vaccines, Scientists Say - KFF Health News The White House’s autism announcement exaggerates links to Tylenol, misleads on vaccines, and sets back the field by ignoring decades of research, scientists say.

In her latest for KFF Health News, @amymaxmen.bsky.social (KSJ '21) spoke to drug safety researchers about the distortion of their findings.

Misinformation, fear and politics – how a South Dakota county drove away millions in solar energy Colton Berens was looking forward to the added income from his farm, but armed with rightwing falsehoods, other Selby residents opposed the move

“This whole thing would be an economic boon for the county, and they were not considering that...They were just fearmongering.”

KSJ Fellow Stephen Robert Miller went on the ground to get the story of how a South Dakota county drove away millions in solar energy: www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Congrats, @aniloza.bsky.social!

Remembering Victor McElheny Past directors, alumni, and friends of the Knight Science Journalism Program reflect on the legacy of its founder and longest-serving director.

Today would have been the 90th birthday of my journalism mentor Victor McElheny—one of the leading science journalists of his era and a huge champion of the craft at MIT's @ksjatmit.bsky.social He died July 14. I was glad to contribute to this collection of remembrances ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/07...

Current KSJ Fellow Christian Von Preysing hung out at the MIT Edgerton Center learning about their high speed camera strobe lab and electronics class. This photo, taken by Jim Bales, shows him popping a balloon.

We're glad to see this new, free resource, which curates some of @theopennotebook.bsky.social's instructive essays, features, and interviews on science journalism craft into a "101" curriculum that anyone can use — from university professors to independent journalists.

Podcast: Should We Make Viruses More Dangerous – For Science? Kicking off Entanglements Season 2, our hosts talk to a microbiologist and a virologist about gain-of-function research.

The incomparable @brookeborel.bsky.social and @annarothschild.bsky.social are back with season two of "Entanglements," the @undark.org podcast that gets scientists to try talk through their disagreements.

Episode 1 takes on gain-of-function research: undark.org/2025/08/20/p...

Remembering Victor McElheny Past directors, alumni, and friends of the Knight Science Journalism Program reflect on the legacy of its founder and longest-serving director.

“The enthusiasm shimmered off him like heat from a turbojet. To be in his presence was to be constantly reminded that the world with science is an utterly different place than it would have been without it.”

KSJ alumni remember founding director Victor McElheny: ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/07...

"At any moment it can appear, creeping in like a shadow in some cases, ambushing like a predator in others."

"The Headache," by former KSJ Fellow and current @undark.org editor @tomzellerjr.com, gets a review in The New Yorker: www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Alumni Notes: A Flurry of Achievements, In Print and on Air A recurring roundup of news about former KSJ Fellows, including a compendium of what the fellows have been writing.

Former KSJ fellows report on catastrophic flooding in Rio, dive deep into the science of headaches, and feast on Aztec tacos, in our latest Alumni Notes: ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/08...

Ft: @thiagomedaglia.bsky.social, @melaniedgkaplan.bsky.social, @tomzellerjr.com, @wojtekbrzezinski.pl, and more.

Under Attack: How Journalists Can Defend Themselves Against Digital Threats Journalists are prime targets for cyber-attacks, but you don’t need to be a security expert to protect yourself. Eva Wolfangel seven practical steps that make a difference.

Journalists are prime targets for cyber-attacks, but you don’t need to be a security expert to protect yourself. @ewo.name shares seven practical steps that make a difference.

ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/06...

Usha Lee McFarling Named Director of the Knight Science Journalism Program - Knight Science Journalism @MIT McFarling, Pulitzer-prize winning journalist and national science correspondent for STAT, was a 1992-93 Knight Science Journalism Fellow.

Usha Lee McFarling, named as the next director of the Knight Science Journalism Program is "eager to take the helm during this critical time for science journalism."

@usha.bsky.social
ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/05...

Anil Oza is Decoding the Dynamics Behind Science Policy Since Oza joined STAT last fall, he has established himself as a journalist with an uncommon talent for detecting the ripple effects of policy decisions across scientific communities.

Anil Oza is Decoding the Dynamics Behind Science Policy

Since @aniloza.bsky.social joined STAT last fall, he has established himself as a journalist with an uncommon talent for detecting the ripple effects of policy decisions across scientific communities.

ksj.mit.edu/news/2025/05...

Samira Hamza

Samira Hamza, editor, researcher, and science journalist based in Egypt

Hamza is the second recipient of the Fellowship for Advancing Science Journalism in Africa and the Middle East, which launched in 2024.

Christian von Preysing-Barry

Christian von Preysing-Barry, documentary producer, wildlife cinematographer and reporter

Stephen Robert Miller

Stephen Robert Miller, freelance journalist and author specializing in climate change adaptation

Sara Reardon

Sara Reardon, freelance journalist and consulting editor for Nature
@sarareardon.bsky.social

Rodrigo Pérez Ortega

Rodrigo Pérez Ortega, science, health and environmental journalist
@rpocisv.bsky.social

Paula Moura

Paula Moura, multimedia science journalist

Sarah McBride

Sarah McBride, business reporter covering technology and ethics

Smriti Mallapaty

Smriti Mallapaty, senior reporter for Nature magazine
smritimallapaty.bsky.social