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One of the hardest things to learn as a new science journalist is what makes a study newsworthy.

Maybe this is easier if you didn’t start in science. But for people with science backgrounds, it can be really hard to step out of scientist mode and into journalist mode when evaluating new research findings. Even important research doesn’t always make good news.

In this post, I’ll walk through a few criteria that make a research study newsworthy.

What do I mean by newsworthy?

Depending on the publication you’re pitching, definitions of “newsworthiness” will vary. And unless you’re writing for a nonprofit that doesn’t care about money, newsworthy is necessarily entangled with “clickworthy.”

Generally speaking, editors are looking for stories that their audiences care about and want to read. There are lots of reasons people want to read science news, we’ll get to some of them below. Journalists also often think of newsworthiness as having to do with public service — not just what the public wants to know, but what the public needs to or should know.

For news stories, newsworthiness also usually means “recent.” A study published 1 year ago isn’t newsworthy unless something came up in the meantime that infused it with new relevance.

Hints that a study might be newsworthy

These are just some of the things that might contribute to making a study newsworthy. Ultimately, newsworthiness is subjective and up to you and your editor. Different publications value different things, because their purposes and audiences are different. Think about who you’re writing for and why, and it’ll help keep you on the right track.

Novelty

Did the study say or do something new? Or is it just a tiny incremental step — or just more of the same? You should be looking for novelty no matter what other hints might tell you that a study could be worth reporting on.

Quality

Bad quality studies aren’t newsworthy unless you’re reporting on how bad they are.

Extremes

People love extremes and broken records. Hottest. Coldest. Biggest. Smallest. Oldest. Fastest. Slowest. Keep an eye out for these. Astronomy stories feature a lot of extremes — I personally think the “extremeness” of space is one reason people love space stories (which are usually not at all relevant to daily life) so much.

Firsts

Editors love a good “first,” whether it’s the first time some new kind of weird space object was detected or the first time scientists managed to do something new.

Paradigm shifts

If a new finding overturns something we thought we knew, that’s a good sign it’s newsworthy. Look for research that challenges existing narratives — but make sure that it’s a serious, well-founded challenge before making any big claims.

Settling a debate

A lot of science is incremental, but sometimes a study comes along that really settles a debate or outstanding question. Those studies are often newsworthy.

Counterintuitive findings

Similarly, if a research finding runs against common sense or conventional wisdom — especially if it is about something readers encounter in daily life or are likely to have strong feelings about — then it might be newsworthy. If it’d shock your grandma, you’re on the right track.

Important applications

If a scientific finding has obvious and important potential applications, that can make it newsworthy.

Want some help learning to find and pitch science news stories? I offer 1:1 training and support for early-career science writers, both via Zoom and asynchronously if you just want someone to read over a pitch, post, or application. Interested? Get in touch!

Health

Scientific studies that have something real and important to say about health are newsworthy. But be careful here. Scientists sometimes make pretty big claims about health based on preliminary studies of cell cultures or mice. And there’s a lot of money flowing in health studies that can cloud interests, which you might not know to keep an eye out for if you’re used to reporting on things like fundamental physics or entomology. Read magazines like Stat to get a sense for what makes a good health news story.

Identity

Science that speaks to peoples’ identities and lived experiences tends to resonate. This is why any time anyone publishes anything about a human sex difference, the internet explodes. People want to feel validated and valuable in their identities. And they get really, really inflamed about things that challenge the way they understand themselves.

Politics

If a scientific study touches on a hot-button political issue or helps people understand politics better, it’s a good bet.

Humans and our place in the universe

Humans are kind of narcissistic. We love understanding ourselves. So scientific findings that reveal new aspects of the human story, help us understand our minds and bodies, or help us see our place in the wider universe tend to grab attention. Think human evolution and prehistory, the origin of life, the hunt for aliens, language, brains, society, and related topics — just make sure there’s actually a new finding to report.

Weird, gross, creepy, funny, cute

Things that are cute, weird, gross, creepy, or funny tend to catch people’s attention and can make an otherwise uninteresting stud pretty interesting to the right audience. This is one reason animal stories tend to work so well.

A strong visual element

If the study you’re reporting on comes with strong visuals, like striking video footage or beautiful microscopy, that can be a good selling point for editors at certain publications.

Have questions? Find me on Bluesky or shoot me an email. If it’s something I can answer quickly, I’m happy to help. Otherwise, I offer training and support for early-career science writers taking their first steps into this field — both 1:1 via Zoom and asynchronously. Check out my website or get in touch for more details.