British medical science journal The Lancet has done a write-up on the rapidly expanding Science Media Centre network, detailing the increasingly international nature of the SMC, which began in Britain almost a decade ago.
SMCs opened in Japan and Canada last year and a centre is scheduled to launch in Denmark in 2011. Collaboration between the centres is strong, increasing the exposure of scientists and research to media in other countries. A summit of the SMCs to be held in conjunction with the World Congress of Science Journalism in Cairo in June will look at ways the SMCs can increasingly work together to aid the media in its coverage of science-related issues.
Australian Science Media Centre chief executive Dr Susannah Eliott concludes in the piece: “The growing group of SMCs has the potential to become a powerful international network that champions evidence-based science in the news and helps populations understand the issues facing them, from HIV and mental health to climate change and energy.”