Mićo Tatalović Archives - Knight Science Journalism @MIT

by Knight Science Journalism / January 13th 2021 / Alumni News

Alumni Notes: Award News, A Book Deal, and a Look Back at Yugoslav Science

In 2019, Pam Belluck (’08) wrote an intimate portrait, published in The New York Times, about women pursuing reconstructive surgery after being scarred by female genital cutting. Today, her reporting continues to reap plaudits in the New York journalism scene. A year ago, the piece was honored with the Newswomen’s Club of New York’s Nellie Bly Award, for best frontpage story. It has now been honored again, this time with a New York Press Club Award. Belluck’s piece won in the newspaper category for science and technology feature writing.

The Press Club honor comes on the heels of another win for Belluck. She also took home a Front Page Award from the Newswomen’s Club of New York in the category of specialized reporting in Medicine/Health/Fitness for her reporting on the coronavirus pandemic. Her winning package included the stories “32 Days on a Ventilator: One Covid Patient’s Fight to Breathe Again,” “‘Straight Up Fire’ in His Veins: Teen Battles New Covid Syndrome,” and “‘They Want to Kill Me’: Many Patients Have Terrifying Delirium.”

For an upcoming issue of the Journal of Science and Popular Culture, Mićo Tatalović (’18) takes a rare look into how science was represented in socialist-era Yugoslavia, particularly in the cult magazine Galaksija. Tatalović says the research project had origins in his time as a KSJ fellow three years ago. “One of the many great things about the fellowship is the time and flexibility it gives you to pursue interesting projects,” he says. “ And I spent part of the winter collecting data and writing up this paper.”

Explains Tatalović, Galaksija found a niche in freely reporting science from both sides of the Iron Curtain, apparently avoiding censorship and political influence on its science content by appeasing authorities with its political science articles in lead slots and on the covers. At the same time, Tatalović adds, the magazine seems to have managed to be subversive, with covers that featured socialist topics side-by-side with utopian myth of Atlantis.

Read the article here, in volume 3, issue 2 of the Journal of Science and Popular Culture.

Anil Ananthaswamy (’20) has signed with Dutton (Penguin Random House) to write his fourth book, tentatively titled “Why Machines Learn: The Mathematics Behind Artificial Intelligence.” The book builds off Ananthaswamy’s year of hands-on studies of machine learning as a KSJ fellow. It will explain “the history-making mathematics behind modern artificial intelligence, from the first perceptrons to today’s powerful deep neural networks,” reads an announcement from the publisher. Ananthaswamy’s previous books include “Through Two Doors at Once,” and “The Man Who Wasn’t There.”

Marica Bartusiak (’95), Professor of the Practice Emeritus of the MIT Graduate Program in Science Writing, was recently featured on the podcast WritLarge, produced by Lyceum. She spoke with host Zachary Davis about astronomer Edwin Hubble’s historic 1935 book “Realm of the Nebulae.”

Here’s what other alumni are writing, a compendium from Federico Kukso (‘16):

Tim De Chant (’19): “The Cobalt Empire,” The Wire China.

Nick Clark (‘14): “Lessons from 2020: Reconnecting with nature, a force for good,” Al Jazeera.

Amina Khan (‘19): “Aiming for vaccine equity,” Los Angeles Times.

Iván Carrillo (‘17): “Mammoths in Mexico. The Paleontological Find of the Century,” Tec Review (with Aminetth Sánchez).

Tony Leys (‘20): “COVID-19 vaccinations begin in Iowa care facilities, which have been slammed by deadly outbreaks,” Des Moines Register.

Federico Kukso (‘16): “The forgotten Russian science,” Le Monde Diplomatique (in Spanish).

Teresa Carr (‘18): “Why Alzheimer’s Sufferers Seem Lost in Time and Place,” Texas Monthly.

Richard Fisher (‘20): “Time capsule 2020: The 37 objects that defined the year,” BBC.

Pablo Corea (‘13): “Camilo Solano, a musician trying to understand the pandemic,” El Espectador (in Spanish).

Maryn McKenna (‘14): “Yes to Masks. No to Parties. 2021 Will Be a Lot Like 2020,” Wired.

Teresa Firmino (‘09): “The challenge that started in a scientific article,” Publico (in Portuguese).

Ángela Posada-Swafford (‘01): “It is time for Colombia to jump into scientific diplomacy,” El Tiempo (in Spanish); “Stem Cells: The Unusual Novel Methodology to Treat Horses,” El Tiempo (in Spanish).

by Knight Science Journalism / November 2nd 2020 / Alumni News

Alumni Notes: An Essay Goes Hollywood, an Author Reimagines Pests, and More

Pagan Kennedy’s (‘11) June New York Times piece, “The Rape Kit’s Secret History,” landed like a heavyweight punch to the gut. The 8,000-word essay told the gripping story of Marty Goddard — the Chicago activist who was the driving force behind the 1970s invention of the rape-kit — and the men who would ultimately take most of the credit for her work.

The story was featured in Longreads and within weeks became the subject of a TV and film bidding war, says Kennedy, who fielded more than a dozen inquiries from actors and companies interested in adapting the piece. During one whirlwind week, she took calls with Amy Schumer, Rachel Wiesz, the producers of Law and Order, and several other Hollywood players.

Ultimately, Kennedy struck a deal with Touchstone/Disney for a TV series produced by a team that includes showrunner Sarah Treem. Golden Globe winning actress Claire Danes is set to star in the series, and Kennedy will be an Executive Producer.

Brookshire. Photocredit: Lanver Photography

Bethany Brookshire (’20) has signed a deal to write her debut book, “Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains.” Brookshire’s signing was selected as the “Deal of the Day” at Publisher’s Marketplace, where the forthcoming book was described this way:

“… a study that combines science, journalism, and narrative in exploration of a new big idea: that those animals we deem to be pests — such as mice, rats, deer, pigeons and many more — are considered such not as a result of the animal’s behavior, but because of our own perceptions, beliefs, and actions, and what this reveals about ourselves and our impact on the natural world.”

Pests will be published by Ecco, a New York-based imprint of HarperCollins. Brookshire is currently a staff writer at Science News.

Mićo Tatalović (‘18) was named a runner up for the 2020 European Science Journalist of the Year award, finishing behind Russian journalist Maria Pazi. The announcement was made in Trieste at this year’s European Conference of Science Journalism. A press release announcing the award lauds Tatalović as “one of the most prominent figures in European science journalism in recent years both as a writer and editor.”

Tatalović, who has previously worked for New Scientist, Nature, and SciDev.Net, is now a news editor at Research Professional News.

Valeria Román (´04) was recently named head of a new science-focused news section at Río Negro, a Spanish-language newspaper serving the Patagonia region of Argentina. Called Bio, the science news section brands itself as “journalism for the right to science.” Among the stories that have run so far is one about Fran Bubani, the first openly trans researcher at the Bariloche Atomic Center, a leading Argentine science institution. Watch Román’s interview with Bubani here.

Here’s what other alumni are writing, a compendium from Federico Kukso (‘16):

Betsy Mason (‘16): “Election Maps Are Everywhere. Don’t Let Them Fool You.” The New York Times.

Ibby Caputo (‘15): “A Perfect Match: The inequalities in US healthcare exposed through a deeply personal story,” BBC.

Herton Escobar (‘07): “‘Another piece of populist propaganda’: Critics slam the Brazilian government’s new COVID-19 drug,” Science.

Andrada Fiscutean (‘20): “How Indiana Jones, Rambo, and others ended up in 1980s Czechoslovak text-adventures,” Ars Technica.

Federico Kukso (‘16): “White memory: The fight for the search, rescue and restoration of the audiovisual material registered in the Argentine Antarctica,” La Nación (in Spanish).

Teresa Firmino (‘09): “Seven doctors face disciplinary proceedings for spreading disinformation about Covid-19,” Publico (in Portuguese).

Amina Khan (‘19): “Coronavirus Today: The sacrifices of nurses,” The Los Angeles Times.

Valeria Román (‘05): “The pandemic can be an opportunity to deal with mental health problems that were not previously treated,” Río Negro (in Spanish).

Jason Dearen (‘19): “White House puts ‘politicals’ at CDC to try to control info,” The Associated Press.

Thiago Medaglia (‘20): “SMOKE SCREEN: An in-depth analysis of fire and deforestation data in the Amazon,” Ambiental Media.

Steve Mirsky (‘04): “Nobelist Talks CRISPR Uses,” Scientific American.

Wycliffe Muga (‘07): “Nothing matters more than agriculture policy,” The Star.

Chris Mooney (‘10): “After a college town’s coronavirus outbreak, deaths at nursing homes mount,” The Washington Post.

Richard Friebe (‘07): “The non-Nobel Prize winners: An unknown Lithuanian and a biotech wunderkind,” Der Tagesspiegel (in German).

Rowan Philp (‘10): “Tracking the Superspreader Events Driving the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Global Investigative Journalism Network.

Maryn McKenna (‘14): “In the US, 50 States Could Mean 50 Vaccine Rollout Strategies,” Wired.

by KSJ@MIT / May 9th 2018 / Announcements, KSJ News & Events

Back to Woods Hole for Mićo Tatalović

Looking ahead: Mićo Tatalović at Woods Hole in October. Photo: Bettina Urcuioli.

He visited Woods Hole on the annual KSJ field trip, and this month he’ll head back for a longer stay. Mićo Tatalović, a 2017-18 fellow, is one of 12 journalists awarded Logan Science Journalism Fellowships from the Marine Biological Laboratory, the international center for biological and environmental research.

Mićo covered the environment and ocean sciences as a beat news editor at New Scientist, in London, before he started the KSJ fellowship. Among the highlights of his fellowship year was organizing a two-day presentation on science journalism during the semester break for the Independent Activities Period, or IAP. He’s also chairman of the Association of British Science Writers.

“I am thrilled to have been selected for MBL’s science journalism fellowship,” he said, adding that his visit to Woods Hole last October had given him “a sense of some of the amazing research taking place there.”

Now in its 32nd year, the Logan Science Journalism Program allows established science and health journalists to step into the shoes of the scientists they cover through immersion in hands-on research training at the MBL, an affiliate of the University of Chicago. The program will run from May 30 to June 7.

Many KSJ alumni are among the hundreds of journalists who have gone through the program. Its journalism advisers this year are the author Maryn McKenna (2013-14) and Ángela Posada-Swafford (2000-01), U.S. correspondent for the Madrid-based magazine Muy Interesante.

by Fatima Husain / March 29th 2018 / Fellowship Life

This Year’s Fellows: Mićo Tatalović

A boyhood interest in biology kept growing: Mićo Tatalović on a research vessel during the fellows’ trip to Woods Hole. Photo: Joshua Hatch.

This is the ninth in a series of profiles of the 2017-18 Knight Science Journalism fellows, written by students in MIT’s Graduate Program in Science Writing.

Mićo Tatalović is the environment and life sciences news editor of New Scientist and the chair of the Association of British Science Writers. He came to the Knight Science Journalism Program after many years of editing, writing, and facilitating science-writing projects across Europe.

Born in Rijeka, Croatia, he began his journey to science journalism as a boy, harvesting wild strawberries and ripe potatoes with his grandmother in the countryside. Those experiences planted an interest in biology that kept growing during his undergraduate years at the University of Oxford in England. Then, as a graduate student at the University of Cambridge, he studied zoology and animal behavior, focusing on sentinel meerkats.

While doing field research in South Africa, he began writing articles on meerkats for general audiences. And after graduating from Cambridge with a master’s degree, he entered the science communication program at Imperial College London.

After a series of internships and short jobs in both science and medical writing, Tatalović joined SciDev.net, reporting on scientific advancement and development around the world. As part of his position, he worked with journalists from developing countries and prepared their works for publication. His interest in helping others improve their skills led to his current involvement in two professional networks, the Association of British Science Writers and the Balkan Network of Science Journalists.

Over the course of the fellowship, Tatalović hopes to reflect on his experiences in science journalism with a focus on critically evaluating and improving his work for the future. He looks forward to attending seminars that discuss newer forms of media and technology, and learning about developments in scientific research. Temporarily free from publishing deadlines and editorial commitments, he also intends to develop his skills in investigative journalism and to spend time learning about fields of science he has not studied before.

“It’s a dream come true to be here at MIT and to have the privilege of taking classes and talking to all these world experts here and at Harvard University,” he says. “So many things are happening here … so many things that will change the world.

“To actually be here and to see it for yourself is amazing.”

by KSJ@MIT / January 24th 2018 / KSJ News & Events

What Semester Break? Four Fellows Give a Journalism Course

Using simple, jargon-free language to present evidence can be persuasive, Teresa Carr told the IAP audience.

At most colleges and universities, the semester break is just that: a chance to get out of town and decompress, preferably somewhere warm with something cool to drink. At MIT, for more than four decades, it has been something different — the Independent Activities Period, or IAP, in which members of the MIT community can offer free courses on the topics of their choice, from poetry to cooking to synthetic biology.

And now, science and the media. Four members of the KSJ Class of 2017-18 gave their own IAP session on January 16 and 17 — four lively and disparate talks to more than a dozen community members, from programs as diverse as astrophysics, bioengineering, urban studies, and MIT Portugal.

“Quite a few of us fellows have taught science journalism skills before,” said Mićo Tatalović, who organized the event, “and we each have deep knowledge of our own subspecialties. So the IAP sessions seemed like a great opportunity to give back to the MIT community. which has welcomed us here so openheartedly, and I was glad to see so many people sign up and attend.”

Teresa Carr, an award-winning investigative reporter with Consumer Reports, opened the event with a talk on five barriers to communicating science to a lay audience and how to overcome them — in particular, how to combat misinformation. Focus-group studies of health care communication show that using simple, jargon-free language to present evidence can be persuasive, Teresa said, but she acknowledged that may not be enough for politically charged topics like climate change. People dig in their heels to protect deeply held beliefs, and she highlighted research suggesting that telling people why and how they are being misled can make them more receptive to the facts.

Ehsan Masood, author of several books and editor of the London-based science policy magazine Research Fortnight, focused on the importance of narrative in science communication. Sometimes dismissed as a luxury, narrative writing can make complex discoveries and inventions come alive. Science ‘”is still an inherently human process,” Ehsan explained. “The process involves characters and plots; there is cooperation and competitiveness; years of tedium and moments of drama; truth and lies. In short, it has all the makings of good narrative.”

On Day 2, Joshua Hatch, assistant managing editor for data and interactives at The Chronicle of Higher Education and The Chronicle of Philanthropy, spoke about the dos and don’ts of information graphics, with a slideshow of great examples — and some spectacularly bad ones.

“Graphics should ultimately seek to tell a story,” he explained. “It need not be a heavily detailed or complex story, but the viewer should, at a glance, get a sense of what it is the graphic is saying. Smart and thoughtful decisions about color and text can help with that. So too can empowering viewers to compare data or see connections.”

And Mićo, who is news editor at New Scientist and chairman of the Association of British Science Writers, concluded the two-day event with a talk about science news — where it comes from, how to pitch stories to different publications, how to write news well, and how to attract online readers without compromising on quality.

The talk “was quite interactive,” he said, “with people asking questions and discussing issues as we went along, and finally brainstorming a headline for a hit story we had at New Scientist simulating a real-world newsroom experience.” (The actual headline, from New Scientist in January 2017, was “Chimps beat up, murder, and then cannibalize their former tyrant.”) More than half an hour after the session’s official closing time, audience members lingered to talk about these and other striking examples of the science journalist’s craft.