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Media Coverage of Nanotech Risks and Government on the Rise
WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 /2007 - U.S. newspaper and wire service coverage of questions about nanotechnology risks rose dramatically last year, according to findings of a new study presented at a Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies event. The number of U.S. risk-focused stories rose 58 percentfrom 36 in 2005 to 57 in 2006.
More important is the fact that the
study, conducted by Professor Sharon M. Friedman of Lehigh
University, showed that issues about government regulation
increasingly are getting more media attention. In 2006, more
articles on regulation appeared than in all of 2000-2005 combined.
In comparison with past years, press coverage of concerns about
nanotechnology risks is starting to move away from individual
science research results -- for example, about the toxicity of
nanoparticles in fish -- and toward larger issues like the
governments ability to safely oversee this rapidly commercializing,
cutting-edge technology.
While the number of media articles
raising concerns about nanotechnology risks is still small, it is
growing, and there was a shift in the type of reporting in 2006,
said Friedman. Officials from the Food and Drug Administration,
Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies are more and more
being asked to answer questions about the federal governments
ability to regulate possible nanotechnology risk like the
nano-readiness of existing laws, sufficient resources and adequate
safety research. In collaboration with Brenda P. Egolf, a research
scientist at Lehigh, Friedman has tracked seven years of newspaper
and wire service coverage of nanotechnology risks in the United
States and United Kingdom.
Nanotechnology is turning the world
upside down by enabling amazing new drugs, electronic devices, and
consumer products. Press coverage reflects that increasingly doubts
are being raised about whether government is up to the job of
nanotechnology environment and health oversight. Stories are focused
on whether 20th century regulation is ready for a 21st century
technology and marketplace, noted Julia Moore, Deputy Director of
the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies.
Friedmans presentation, Changing
Patterns of Mass Media Coverage of Nanotechnologys Risks, is
available at
http://www.nanotechproject.org .
Prof. Friedman is Director of the
Science and Environmental Writing Program and Associate Dean at
Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA.
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the ability to
measure, see, manipulate and manufacture things usually between
1-100 nanometers. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter; a flea is
roughly 1 million nanometers wide. More than $50 billion in
nanotechnology products were sold in 2006. By 2014, Lux Research
projects that $2.6 trillion in manufactured goods will incorporate
nanotechnologyabout 15 percent of total global output.
The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies
is an initiative launched by the Woodrow Wilson International Center
for Scholars and The Pew Charitable Trusts in 2005. It is dedicated
to helping business, government and the public anticipate and manage
possible health and environmental implications of nanotechnology.
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For more information Contact: Colin Finan, +1-202-691-4321, colin.finan@wilsoncenter.org, or Sharon McCarter, +1-202-691-4016, sharon.mccarter@wilsoncenter.org
SOURCE: The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies
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