Contemporary Issues in Science Communication

Series Editor: Clare Wilkinson, Professor and Co-Director, Science Communication Unit, University of the West of England Bristol

As science communication continues to establish itself as a discipline in the 21st century, there has never been a better time to consider contemporary science communication and its practices.

‘Fake’ news and digital marketing are changing the context for science journalism. Emerging political eras are altering the way we think about expertise and trust in policymaking, as well as the power of protest. Predatory publishing, open access and the use of social media are presenting novel contexts for researchers to consider in the communication of their work. Meanwhile, there are contemporary scientific and technological developments such as AI, CRISPR and self-driving vehicles which are generating important ethical and social questions. Against this backdrop, we are also now facing one of the greatest global health issues in a generation.

Contemporary Issues in Science Communication will create a space to consider such science matters. In so doing it will also link the present with the past by publishing titles that develop our understanding of the history of science communication, both in practice and as an academic discipline.

Books in this peer-reviewed series will cover a range of topics relevant to contemporary science communication, including, but not limited to:

• Disciplinary insights: Definitions, history and ethics of science communication; the role of science and technology studies; expertise, replication and trust; interdisciplinary knowledge and ideologies.
• Science communication mechanisms and techniques: Citizen science; the role of public relations; knowledge and new forms of media; public policy; gaming, Sci-art and visual communication.
• Inclusivity in science communication: Gender, class, disability, ethnicity and other ‘intersectional’ perspectives; casualisation of science communication labour.

Proposals can also be focussed on specific science, health, environmental and other research subjects, provided the core theme is science communication or engagement related. We welcome submissions from a wide range of disciplinary areas, and the series will be international in outlook.

Authors will be encouraged to write in an engaging, straightforward and conversational style, and to consider if their proposal might also be of interest to science communication practitioners as well as academic audiences. Manuscripts are expected to be between 50,000 and 80,000 words long. Edited collections will be considered, provided a strong rationale can be made which demonstrates the cohesion and consistency of the manuscript.

If you would like to discuss submitting a proposal, please email Clare.Wilkinson@uwe.ac.uk.

Watch the series launch:

You can also watch a message from Clare Wilkinson, and read her article 'The relevance of science communication in the era of COVID' on Transforming Society.

International Advisory Board

Alison Anderson, University of Plymouth, UK
Ayman Elsayed, Grand Egyptian Museum, Egypt
Birte Fahnrich, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Germany
Carla Almeida Museu da Vida, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
Daria Denisova, Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics University, Russia
Elizabeth Rasekoala, African Gong, The Pan African Network for the Popularization of Science and Technology and Science Communication, South Africa
Emily Dawson, University College London, UK
Erik Stengler, The State University of New York College at Oneonta, US
Jenny Martin, University of Melbourne, Australia
Lesley Markham, Center for Open Science, US
Marina Joubert, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa
Padraig Murphy, Dublin City University, Ireland