Tabloid Science
By Jeffry Fawcett, August 23, 2005 in the Editorials blog
I opened the newspaper yesterday to the headline “Skin Cells Converted to Stem Cells.” The subtitle tells why this was front page news: “Scientists’ Work Could Clear Moral Hurdle to Embryonic Research.” The news story gushed about how this discovery would lead to techniques for organ transplants. Buried well into the story it was revealed that practical applications of stem cell research are years if not decades in the future. It’s a kind of tabloid journalism of science.
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