Rodrigues 1

Carina Rodrigues
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:09 AM
I'm not really a "TA."
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:12 AM
Cool opener, Carina. :)
(You don't need a comma
there.)
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:14 AM
This isn't an argument,
Carina -- there's no "sides"
or "stance" or tension.
Other questions that can
help you think about this:
What about the conventions
within this genre will you be
emphasizing? Also: do you
think itd help your reader
(technically, me) to lay out
which specific sources youll
be using to make your
case?
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:16 AM
In your opening sentence,
you used "one," which made
me think that you were
straying away from using
you/we language. Basically,
I want you to be thinking
about being consistent.
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:17 AM
Hmm... are you suggesting
that scientific websites are
more unbiased than other
scientific genres? If so,
why?
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:18 AM
Interesting observation. Be
careful not to generalize or
assume, though -- the best
claims are supported by
evidence. Can you
substantiate this?

TA Zack De Piero
Writing 2- WP1
MW 12 PM Section
12 October 2015

The Genre of Science Journalism As Seen In Different Media

One might come across an intriguing article about the latest scientific news and wonder:
is what I just read fact, or fiction? Despite presenting similar information, science news articles
are depicted in different ways, depending on the platform. Because each article targets a
particular audience, each has similar and contrasting conventions that are all indicative of the
genre. This paper will analyze the commonalities between these sources, as well as their
differences. It will delve into the very controversial topic of the link (or lack thereof, depending
on your opinion) between illnesses and vaccines, and how different mainstream media presents
news regarding this subject.
In order to compare and contrast, we will start at the most standard, unbiased sources for
science news: scientific websites. Examples of these would be ScienceDaily, ScienceNews,
JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association), etc. The subjects of these articles are
usually about the most recent findings and research. Often these articles are written by scientific
journalists who are well-educated in the specific field that they are writing about, or in another
scientific field, and more often than not have a degree in journalism as well. With their main
purpose to be informative and educational, these pieces are written for scholars and others from
the scientific community, or just regular people who want to be kept up-to-date with the latest

Zack De Piero 10/19/15,

3:20 AM
Woooooo! "Textual
features!" :) Hell yeah,
Carina.
I'm wondering what you're
trying to accomplish in this
paragraph... topic
sentences help me follow
your thought process, so
you might wanna consider
being a little more clear with
your purposes here.
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:23 AM
Yes, for sure -- can you
remind me about how this
relates back to your central
argument?
In other words, there's an
objective stance -- OK, so
what?
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:26 AM
Help me see this. Prove it.
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:26 AM
Good! This is the kind of
evidence I want.

Rodrigues 2

scientific news. In regards to their textual features, science news articles found on these reputable
websites are characterized by a number of constraints. They are often written in a formal manner
using academic jargon, which is appropriate because of their intellectual audience; they are able
to use sophisticated words and complex terms without necessarily having to explain what they
mean. The length of these articles can range from about one page, to several pages.
Concerning the tone of these articles, the authors are usually meant to take an objective
stance in the way that they report and explain information and current events. In addition to this,
one will rarely find humor or lighthearted language in these pieces. And, not only is the language
in these articles clear and structured, the format is as well. For example, an article found on
JAMA titled Law, Ethics, and Public Health in the Vaccination Debates: Politics of the Measles
Outbreak is broken up into three sections, which individually discussed different aspects of the
topic, such as State Vaccine Mandates, Politics of Compulsory Vaccination, and a final
section talking about the parents role in the decision to/to not vaccinate their children. At the
bottom article is a list of references, as well as information about the author, including a conflict
of interest disclosure to ensure the reader that the journalism is unbiased. These types of articles
also make a point to incorporate various in-text citations of scientific studies and research in
order to substantiate whatever information they are giving and whatever claims they are making.
The second media source I will be analyzing is certainly less formal than the

Zack De Piero 10/19/15,

3:28 AM
OK, I remember us talking
about this topic in class, and
I remember thinking, "oh
yeah! Great idea!"

aforementioned reputable scientific news websites. Those who are familiar with the social media

However, I think I forgot

what you were doing here,
and I think you might want
to really spell out, superclearly, what you're doing in
this paper from the get-go
(ie, in the Intro).

with posts on sites such as ScienceDaily and JAMA is that they are meant mainly for

platform Facebook are aware of how many pop science articles are circulated and shared on the
site. These articles are usually more or less factual, but the most significant way they contrast

Rodrigues 3

entertainment purposes rather than educational purposes. A key convention of these pieces is the
attention-grabbing headlines. For example, the page I F****ing Love Science recently posted an
article titled Antioxidant Supplements May Make Cancer Worse, and accompanied it with the
caption Might be time to dump the vitamin pills. This kind of headline is taking advantage of
Zack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:29 AM
Great evidence, great
follow-up analysis

that shock appeal that so often lures unsuspecting readers. Going off of this point, the audience
for these articles is the average person who is simply spending time surfing the internet, who will
most likely not be able to recognize erroneous information if it is disguised to look factual. The
individuals who read and share these articles usually do not have a strong scientific background,
and the writers who write these articles for IFLS do not necessarily need to have degree in
scientific study or journalism to work for the page, although it is preferred. The language used is
often very simple and explanatory, which contrasts to that found in formal science articles. It is
language that is meant to be able to be easily understood without the reader needing a strong
scientific background.
The casualness of these articles is also a convention unique to this genre. The use of

Zack De Piero 10/19/15,

3:30 AM
Which articles? Whenever
you use this/these/those,
you might wanna include the
noun that they're referring
to.

profanity in the title of the page, as well as the contemporary slang incorporated within the
article make these pieces appealing to a younger audience. This speaks to the purpose of these
pop science articles that appear on pages like IFLS. Their goal is to get the younger generation
interested in science; this contrasts with, say, the articles one can find on JAMA, which are
tailored to individuals who are already interested in scientific news, and simply want to be
informed. The pop science of IFLS also makes use of a critical writing technique: ethos. For
example, the article Anti-Vaxxers Fund Study That Finds Zero Link Between Vaccinations And
Autism makes the bold statement that Vaccinations do not cause autism (Davis), then

Rodrigues 4

proceeds to cite and describe a recent study that provides evidence to support this argument. By
citing research studies within their works to support whatever information they are giving, this
makes the reader believe and trust that that the article is reliable (Carroll 63).
The final media source I will examine is persuasive websites, specifically the antiZack De Piero 10/19/15,
3:27 AM
Question for you: does this
*I will examine* selfreferential language do
anything helpful to enhance
your argument? If not, I'd
scrap it.

vaccine-movement website, Think Twice. Think Twice is an organization that strongly believes
that there is a connection between autism (and a variety of other illnesses and disorders) and
vaccinations. They provide a plethora of links to scientific articles and research studies that
supposedly support their claims. In this case, the articles given are mostly written by the same
few individuals. Contrary to the previously discussed scientific articles seen on social media and
mainstream science websites, the pieces that appear on websites like these are meant to offer a
strong persuasive argument to the audience. Though the scientific articles do contain conventions
of legitimate articles -- such as citations of research studies, academic jargon, etc. -- they seem to

Zack De Piero 10/19/15,

3:30 AM
Nice use of dashes here,
Carina.

be extremely biased. In addition to this, these websites will only showcase scientific articles that
support their claims (regardless of the fact that their key foundational studies have actually been
retracted, and the most recent research study is from 2002). The articles that are featured on
ThinkTwice draws on pathos to further influence the audience (Carroll 63). They have unsettling

Zack De Piero 10/19/15,

3:31 AM
I like how you've
incorporated a reference to
our readings here -- I'd like
to see more of it.

titles such as 131 Ways for an Infant to Die: Vaccines and Sudden Death to appeal to the
emotions of the reader. The rhetoric that appears in these articles is deceptively convincing, but
upon further examination, it is quite flawed. One must thoroughly understand the rhetorical
context here, in order to not be fooled by persuasive language and misleading information.
Understanding what genre is and how it works is essential to being a shrewd writer, as
well as a shrewd reader. The conventions associated with a genre are not exactly rules, but can

Rodrigues 5

instead be thought of as common features. All of the articles discussed were about the same
topic, however they drew upon certain conventions in order to appeal to a specific audience and
keep them interested. Being able to acknowledge that a text need not contain every single
convention to be a part of a genre is the first step to fully comprehending what a genre is, as well
as its purpose.

Works Cited
Alford, Justine. "Antioxidant Supplements May Drive Skin Cancer Spread." IFLScience.
N.p., 07 Oct. 2015. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
Carroll, Laura Bolin. Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Step Forward Rhetorical Analysis. Vol.
1. N.p.: n.p., 2010. Print.

Rodrigues 6

Davis, Josh L. "Anti-Vaxxers Fund Study That Finds Zero Link Between Vaccinations
And Autism." IFLScience. N.p., 06 Oct. 2015. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
Gostin, Lawrence O., JD. "Law, Ethics, and Public Health in the Vaccination Debates:
Politics of the Measles Outbreak." JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association).
American Medical Association, 17 Mar. 2015. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
"Immunization Studies: Adverse Vaccine Reactions. Thinktwice!" Immunization Studies:
Adverse Vaccine Reactions. Thinktwice! New Atlantean Press, n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.

Writing 2 Feedback Matrix for WP1

Table of Textual Features

Rodrigues 7

Did Not Meet

Met

Expectations

Expectations

Thesis Statement
X

X/
Use of Textual Evidence

X-

from Genres

Use of Course Readings

X

Analysis
X

Exceeded
Expectations

Rodrigues 8

Organization/Structure
X-

Attention to Genre/
Conventions and

X/X-

Rhetorical Factors

Sentence-level
Clarity,
Mechanics, Flow

Rodrigues 9

Carina,
Other
Comments

This paper is an excellent start -- Im 100% certain that youre

going to be able to take it to the next level come portfolio time.
Please read the comments that I laid out. If I could give two
suggestions, itd be: (1) find your argument -- what it is that
youre trying to convince me of, and (2) use the course readings
to your advantage -- they can help you build your argument and
clarify your points.
Also, please feel free to use more of your own voice -- let
Carina shine through. This doesnt have to be a kinda/sorta dull
paper, unless you want it to be (I dont know why youd want it
to be though!). :)
Z
8/10

Rodrigues 10