I am about to lead a discussion of science and medical blogs with a group of journalism students in a course entitled, Medical Journalism. While many of the students are specifically majoring in medical and science journalism in a master's program, some are undergraduates in general journalism and mass communications looking to get a flavor for medical writing for print and broadcast.

My question to the valued readers of this humble blog is:

What would you tell these young, knowledge-seeking minds about how science and medical blogs and bloggers might contribute to their future careers as "conventional" journalists?

For example, I have been a big proponent of journalists seeking the input of science bloggers when writing articles pitched via press releases from journals or research institutions. Many bloggers are practicing scientists, physicians, physician-scientists and other allied health professionals who

1. possess highly-specialized expertise

2. demonstrate the ability and desire to communicate complex science and medical information to broad, less-specialized or lay audiences

3. are far more likely to respond to media requests promptly (i.e., on deadline) than the average "big-name" expert source pitched by medical center news service offices.

As a scientist-blogger, I have been fortunate to develop a somewhat scholarly reputation in journalism not because of any formal journalism training, but rather that journalists with online savvy keep tabs on my posts and have developed professional relationships with me.

My guess is that wise sci/med journalists keep a cadre of RSS feeds in their news aggregators from science bloggers so they can get well-parsed information and commentary whenever a major story breaks. I view this as a symbiotic relationship because the vast majority of sci/med bloggers want to share their knowledge without any desire for competing with journalists for jobs, a concern I sometimes hear from professional writers.

So what advice do you have for journalism students or practicing journalists on how to interface with science and medical bloggers?