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The Compass: The Public Misunderstanding of Science: Trust: What is the best way to communicate public health messages?

Factual

Trust: What is the best way to communicate public health messages?

13/10/2021 GMT

The Public Misunderstanding of Science

BBC World Service - The Compass, The Public Misunderstanding of Science, Trust: What is the best way to communicate public health messages?

Science journalist Sue Nelson explores why have so many people given up on science

Science journalist Sue Nelson explores why have so many people given up on science.

Anti-vaxxers, flat Earthers, 5G arsonists and climate change deniers – why have so many people given up on science and where are governments, scientists and the media going wrong?

As Covid-19 continues to affect us all, what is the best way to communicate public health messages, when the bottom line is saving lives? Umaru Fofana reports from Sierra Leone on the Ebola prevention and vaccine campaigns and former BBC science correspondent, Sue Nelson, speaks to public health experts and fact checkers about efforts to combat misinformation.

(Photo: Pupils look at an Ebola prevention poster during a sensibilisation campaign provided by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in Abidjan. Credit: Sia Kambou/AFP/Getty Images)

The Compass: The Public Misunderstanding of Science

Why have so many people given up on science?

Anti-vaxxers, flat Earthers, 5G arsonists and climate change deniers – why have so many people given up on science and where are governments, scientists and the media going wrong?

Although surveys reveal scientists are trusted – with many taking centre stage during the Covid-19 pandemic – science is often perceived as the domain of ‘experts’, the process of science is misunderstood, and scientific evidence is likened to belief.

To investigate how we can build a more scientifically literate planet – and why that might be a good idea – science journalist and former BBC Science Correspondent, Sue Nelson, teams-up with reporters in Sierra Leone, the Netherlands, and the United States.

We discover how drama and music are being used in the fight against Ebola, how space can help transform science education and why regret is a powerful weapon during vaccination campaigns. Sue also hears why science communication sometimes fails, how issues like climate change have become politicised, discovers how to reason with conspiracy theorists and why it’s perfectly okay to maintain a healthy scepticism about scientific and technological advance.

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