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GSA Science Communication Fellowship Wrap-Up
Beth Geiger, 2017–2018 GSA
Science Communication Fellow
In June 2017, I was thrilled and
honored to be selected as GSA’s
first Science Communication
Fellow. This was a 10-month,
remote position helping GSA spread
the word about research published
in GSA journals and at meetings.
I’m originally a geologist, but I’ve
worked as a freelance science writer
for quite a while. Though I write about everything from clouds to
conservation, geology is by far my first love. So I was especially
excited about the opportunity to be re-immersed into the latest
research and current hot topics in earth science.
A major part of the Fellowship involved writing monthly press
releases, to be distributed on the GSA website and on science
news hubs such as EurekaAlert. As a science writer, I’m often
assigned stories based on press releases that my editors have
seen. But with the GSA Fellowship I found myself in a different
place, at the very beginning of that process, reviewing and select-
ing interesting technical papers and then writing the press
releases that summarize and publicize them.
It’s a fascinating challenge. What research will seem important
and/or intriguing to the lay public? Can I explain the science, its
context and its implications, clearly enough to catch the eye of
the media? (And of course accurately: I am always gratified …
and relieved… when a researcher tells me I explained their work
well.) Choosing a paper to promote also meant digging into the
backstory to learn if the results resolve a long-standing debate,
forge into important new territory, or just add incrementally to
previous work.
I soon realized that the power to choose papers for news
releases also came with responsibility. After all, my selection and
my words could lead to more publicity for a researcher, and per-
haps more recognition and funding. In one case, for example, I
emailed a British researcher to tell him my press release about his
upcoming Geology paper had been posted that day. “I know,” he
emailed right back. “The BBC just called me.”
Another significant role of the Science Communication
Fellowship was assisting with media-related tasks for the GSA
Annual Meeting in Seattle in October 2017. Before the meeting,
along with several other writers and GSA staff, I helped choose
20 abstracts out of nearly 5,000 to highlight for the press. Just
reading through all those abstracts was dizzying: equal parts
exciting geologic journey, “aha” moments, and brain fry. After
three or so conference calls, we’d agreed on a mix of abstracts that
22 GSA Today | August 2018
had high public interest (think landslides and earthquakes), were
geologically groundbreaking, or in a couple cases, were just fun.
Here, especially, I think my geology background really helped.
At the Seattle meeting I helped run the onsite newsroom,
where journalists could pick up press releases and tip sheets,
stash their coats, mingle, and have a quiet place to file stories.
I was also able to interface with GSA leadership and attend pre-
sentations and social events that gave me an inside view of what
is happening in the world of geology.
In addition, I had the pleasure of mentoring four graduate stu-
dent Science Communication Interns at the 2017 Annual
Meeting. Each developed a blog post based on a technical talk of
their choosing. Working with them and editing their drafts after
the meeting was fun and rewarding. It gave me new insights into
the nitty gritty of the writing process and what it really takes to
communicate a technical topic in a clear and compelling way.
The GSA Science Communication Fellowship has been a won-
derful experience for me. Selecting papers and writing press
releases gave me an appreciation for that process, which I’ve usu-
ally only experienced from the other side, and I think made me a
better writer. I made great contacts, some new and some renewed,
and even met some true legends of geology. And I really enjoyed
mentoring and editing aspiring science writers, too.
I hope my work has helped GSA spread the word about how
cool and relevant earth science is. I also hope to contribute to
GSA’s media efforts in the future. For others interested in this or
similar opportunities, I would say that excitement about earth
science, the willingness to meet particular editorial needs, and
some experience writing for lay audiences will go a long way.
GSA staff, particularly my main contacts Justin Samuel and
Christa Stratton, were great to work with. I extend a heartfelt
thanks to them, and also to Bruce and Karen Clark, who
graciously funded the fellowship, for providing me with this
terrific opportunity.