LAHORE: Khwarizmi Science Society and Technology Times arranged a workshop on science communication was held at Confucius Institute, New Campus, and University of Punjab the other day.  

The objective of workshop was to reorient science communication in broader context.

General Secretary, Khwarizmi Science Society Dr Sabieh Anwar was chief guest. Editor Weekly Technology Times Sayyed Paras Ali, Communication and Media Studies Department, Fatima Jinnah Women University Shahla Adnan was also present.

Shahzada Irfan from The News International said it is dire need for effective science journalism along with other aspects of journalism such as criminal journalism, political journalism.

Emphasizing on the lack of awareness among the public, he said “I have never seen a science journalism team in Pakistan in my career of eighteen years, it is unfortunate that we have separated science from our daily lives”, he said.  

Shahla Adnan presented her research on “Agenda Building Role of Television in Science and Technology”. She argued that the media can “induce taste-buds in the mindsets of the audience and our audiences are conditioned to show interest in entertaining content rather than informative”.

Dr Sabieh Anwar shared his experience as a scientist, a professor of physics and a science communicator. He mentioned that all science communication taking place in Pakistan is of celebratory in nature, not informatory.

For effective science communication, there is a need of informative science communication sessions to attract the young and emerging scientists as technological sophistication should not only be a hobby for them, it has rather become a need for us to keep up with the ever-developing world.

Sayyed Paras discussed how language barriers can create a gap among the scientists, technologists, journalists and the laymen and it can only be eradicated by making science simple and understandable for all.

Participants stressed that there is a gap of trained journalists who are effective science communicators, and part of this gap has been filled with pseudoscientific experts able to reach the audiences through websites, blogs, and other social media.