Matthew Nisbet
Professor of Communication at Northeastern University.
nisbetmc
Posts by this author
March 5, 2008
As I explained yesterday, it's foolish to dismiss the potential impact of the Heartland Institute conference. The organizers have a powerful framing strategy, one that resonates strongly with conservative media outlets and many Americans. It's these kinds of successful PR strategies that continue…
March 5, 2008
The latest issue of Nature Reports Stem Cell Research runs a lengthy news analysis by Meredith Wadman on the political communication effort that ultimately killed the New Jersey stem cell bond initiative. As the analysis details, a number of framing strategies on the part of opponents helped…
March 4, 2008
I will be spending next week (my spring break) in San Francisco as an Osher Fellow at the Exploratorium science museum. While in the Bay Area, Chris Mooney will be flying up from LA to join me Tuesday evening at UC Berkeley for our latest in the Speaking Science 2.0 tour. Details are below. (We are…
March 4, 2008
In a segment set to air on BBC/PRI's The World tomorrow, I offer my observations about the communication strategy of The Heartland Institute. The Chicago based think tank seeks to frame climate change in a way that is consistent with their free market ideology and mission.
Here's my analysis:
In…
March 2, 2008
With more than a million contributors and volunteers, if Obama makes it to the Oval Office, he could be the first "network president." That's how Joe Trippi on PBS NOW explains the Obama campaign's potential to turn their digitally linked contributors and volunteers into a massive political force…
March 1, 2008
In this week's Point of Inquiry podcast, host DJ Grothe and I share a wide ranging discussion about the relationship between science and religion in the United States and the impact of the New Atheist movement. Much of the discussion revolves around the themes that I explored in the presentation…
February 27, 2008
For readers in the Madison-to-Minneapolis region, on Thurs. March 27 I will be giving a talk at the University of Wisconson-Eau Claire. I will be covering much of the same ground that was featured on the two AAAS panels I appeared on earlier this month.
In the talk, not only will I be focusing on…
February 27, 2008
A perspective from Vanderbilt University professor John Greer: When a candidate goes on the offensive to show the harm in an opponent's preferred policies or an inconsistency between an opponent's words and their actions, it helps set an important comparison point for voters.
When those attacks…
February 26, 2008
There's more press coverage and follow up on the AAAS session "Communicating Science in a Religious America." My colleague Dietram Scheufele, a professor of Life Sciences Communication at the University of Wisconsin, has this blog post up outlining his presentation on how religious Americans view…
February 24, 2008
A few more bloggers who were in attendance at the "Communicating Science in a Religious America" panel have weighed in.
-->The editor of Nature's blog network describes the panel as the most interesting session she attended at AAAS.
-->And if you read French, Agence Presse has this report.…
February 24, 2008
Traveling back from talks at UTexas, I spotted this front page feature in today's Austin American Statesman. As I have noted at this blog before, according to surveys and experts who track the Evangelical movement, a generational split has emerged among Evangelicals when it comes to the issues of…
February 21, 2008
In the Wall Street Journal today, GOP strategist Karl Rove rejects conventional wisdom that Obama is vulnerable simply because of the two sided attacks from Clinton and McCain, but rather because in Tuesday night's Wisconsin speech he made a shift away from a centrist to a "left" political agenda.…
February 20, 2008
Expect a lot more of this train of thought pushed by the Clinton campaign and various journalists and pundits over the next two weeks leading up to the primaries in Ohio and Texas.
February 19, 2008
One of the reporters I spotted at AAAS was Curtis Brainard of the Columbia Journalism Review. Curtis is CJR's science correspondent and creator of CJR's Observatory, a great new online source for analysis of how the media is covering science.
At AAAS, I also saw Bud Ward who runs the Yale Forum on…
February 18, 2008
I hope to have more details on Sunday's Communicating Science in a Religious America panel later this week and there will also be several media reports forthcoming. The turnout was stunning with the room packed, people sitting on the floor and crowding the doors. As discussion and dialogue took…
February 18, 2008
A good overview of the relevant research in social psychology from the Sunday Boston Globe.
February 18, 2008
At the Science Friday broadcast from AAAS (audio), there was a focus during the discussion on the necessary collaboration between science and religion in solving societal problems. Below is from the transcript. First the audience question and then answers from Francesca Grifo, Union of Concerned…
February 18, 2008
Over at my friends Chris and Sheril's Intersection blog, I posted a summary of some reservations I have always had about the staging of an actual presidential science debate. Bottom line: research suggests that when it comes to audience effects, a presidential debate is a really bad idea. Despite…
February 17, 2008
Yesterday at AAAS, a crowd of 250 attendees overflowed into the hallway, as we gathered for a fascinating panel discussion about media coverage of climate change. The amazingly successful event was organized by Cristine Russell of Harvard University and the Council for the Advancement of Science…
February 12, 2008
Brown University has a news advisory out about Ken Miller's presentation at the panel on "Communicating Science in a Religious America." From the release:
Kenneth Miller, a professor of biology and a leading defender of the theory of evolution, will argue that pro-Darwin forces need to acknowledge…
February 12, 2008
As I posted yesterday, this weekend at the annual AAAS meetings in Boston, I will be presenting as part of the panel on "Communicating Science in a Religious America."
I will also be participating in a second session that focuses on news coverage of climate change. Other panelists include…
February 11, 2008
There's a definite buzz about Sunday's panel at the AAAS meetings in Boston. With a focus on the theme of "Communicating Science in a Religious America," there is sure to be a large crowd and a healthy discussion. The panel will be held on Sunday afternoon from 1:45 to 4:45 p.m, Hynes Convention…
February 9, 2008
The Center for Inquiry has posted a list of its many Darwin Day events scheduled for locations across the country. For science enthusiasts, these events serve as an important ritual for building community and social identity.
Darwin Day events also provide a news peg for generating local media…
February 1, 2008
Blogs are already a central feature of mainstream news sites and their importance is only likely to grow. Just take a scan at the reporting, analysis, and commentary available at NYTimes.com and WashingtonPost.com.
So the question is...how long will it be until the Pulitzer prize committee…
February 1, 2008
I am in Italy until Wednesday of next week participating in an expert workshop on the scientific and societal dimensions of climate change. Organized by the Earth Institute's Urban Design Lab at Columbia University and the Adriano Olivetti Foundation, the workshop will turn into an edited volume…
January 29, 2008
Collectively, the polls show a double digit lead for Clinton over Obama in California. Yet a recent Gallup survey goes beyond the standard numbers and offers estimates based on a high versus low turnout and more importantly, based on the certainty of respondents as to their vote preference. The…
January 28, 2008
The American University campus surged with excitement and energy today as thousands of students and supporters gathered hours before the rally to bear witness to the Kennedy family's historic endorsement of Barack Obama for president.
Needless to say, college branding doesn't get much better than…
January 27, 2008
Here's some news not only of interest to readers in DC, but it could also be an important new dynamic in the Democratic primary race. Tomorrow in a rally open to the public on the campus at American University, Ted Kennedy will join Caroline Kennedy in endorsing Barack Obama for president. Read…
January 23, 2008
On the Kojo Nnamdi Show at noon EST today, I will be joined by David Jenkins, Government Affairs Director for Republicans for Environmental Protection
and Gene Karpinski, President, League of Conservation Voters. Should be an interesting discussion on environmental issues and how they are playing…
January 22, 2008
Tomorrow, I will be appearing on WAMU's Kojo Nnamdi show for a segment called "A bi-partisan approach to environmentalism." The show starts at noon EST and you can listen live or to the audio archive here. I will post more details on the other guests when they become available. To preview my take…