Science journalists to discuss why storytelling matters for science

Liz Neely and Ed Yong will discuss “Why Storytelling Matters for Science” on Monday, Sept. 23 at 4:30 p.m. in the Yale Science Building auditorium, 260 Whitney Ave. The event, which is free and open to the public, is cosponsored by the Poynter Fellowship in Journalism and the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, the Yale Microbial Sciences Institute, and The Franke Program in Science and the Humanities.

Neely is the executive director of The Story Collider, a nonprofit organization that shares personal stories about science through live shows and a weekly podcast. She specializes in environmental science, journalism, and social media. Prior to her work with The Story Collider, she served as the assistant director of Science Outreach at COMPASS, a nonprofit organization that helps scientists share their stories with the public through journalism and social media to allow their scientific work to reach wider audiences.

Yong is a Washington, D.C.-based science journalist for The Atlantic. His work has also been featured in National Geographic, the New Yorker, Wired, and many other publications. He is the recipient of the Michael E. DeBakey Journalism Award for his biomedical reporting in 2016. He is also the author of the award-winning blog “Not Exactly Rocket Science,” published by National Geographic. His first book, “I Contain Multitudes,” was a New York Times bestseller.

The Poynter Fellowship in Journalism was established by Nelson Poynter, who received his master’s degree in 1927 from Yale. The fellowship brings to campus distinguished reporters, editors and others who have made important contributions to the media. Among recent Poynter fellows are Jim VadeHei, Louisa Lim, and Emily Esfahani Smith.