1.
Communicating
EU Research
Prepared by:
European Commission, Research DG,
Communication Unit
October 2008
1

2.
Why communicating research?
“Researchers are reacting to recent public concerns about
the direction and potential outcomes of their work by
increasing their efforts to communicate to non-specialists.
While this is a necessary practice, such communication
has often had limited success […]. Science communication
has tended to involve researchers talking at the public
about what science is doing with the expectation that this
would increase acceptance.”
EURAB (European Research Advisory Board to the European Commission), Research and Societal
Engagement, June 2007: http://ec.europa.eu/research/eurab/pdf/eurab_07_013_june_%202007_en.pdf
2

3.
Communication in FP7
Grant agreement, Annex II, General conditions
II.12. Information and communication
The beneficiaries shall, throughout the duration of the project,
! take appropriate measures to engage with the public and the
N ew media about the project aims and results and to highlight
the Community financial support.
…
FP6 model contract:
The beneficiaries shall, throughout the duration of the project, take appropriate
measures to ensure suitable publicity for the project in order to highlight the
Community financial support.
3

4.
Communication in FP7
Grant agreement, Annex II, General conditions
II.12. Information and communication
Unless the Commission requests otherwise, any publicity, including at
a conference or seminar or any type of information or promotional
! material (brochure, leaflet, poster, presentation etc), must specify
w
Ne that the project has received Community research funding and
display the European emblem. When displayed in association with
a logo, the European emblem should be given appropriate
prominence. This obligation to use the European emblem in
respect of projects to which the European Community contributes
implies no right of exclusive use.
[…]
4

5.
Communicating withing EU-
funded projects
External communication helps …
Increasing the success rate of your proposal (provided you have a
good communication/dissemination plan)
Disseminating research results
Increasing visibility and science awareness
Achieving successful integration with stakeholders
Promoting internal communication
Networking and marketing the consortium
Bridging the gap between scientists and the public
Making European research more attractive
5

6.
Good practices
MAR-ECO (international study of the animals inhabiting the
northern mid-Atlantic)
Public communication built-in
Produced beautiful photos, amazing videos and a
travelling exhibition
Descartes Prize 2006 for communication
http://www.mar-eco.no/
6

7.
Good practices
Noah’s Ark (impact of global
warming on cultural heritage)
‘Diary note’ was sent out to journalists
and published on 23 May 2007 by
Research DG
400+ articles published in the media
incl. New York’s Metro: ‘Monuments
threatened by global warming’
http://noahsark.isac.cnr.it/
7

8.
Good practices
Census of Antarctic Marine Life (largest international
biological research programme undertaken during the 2007-
2008 International Polar Year)
During their last mission in the Antarctica, the
researchers published a daily journal on the web,
explaining their work, conditions, etc
They found that this increased media coverage by 30%
http://www.caml.aq/
8

9.
Good practices
Nano2hybrids (project on the synthesis and
properties of carbo nanotubes)
Video clips
Scientists blogs and diaries
Forum
etc
http://www.nano2hybrids.net/
9

10.
Good practices
COMNET
Informal network of communication managers in 15 FP6
projects
About 3,000 are engaged in the COMNET projects
COMNET members address the design and
implementation of communication activities in the health
and food sector
10

11.
Open Access Pilot
Special clause added to all grant agreements of 7
FP7 research areas (Health, Energy, Environment,
E-Infrastructures, ICT, Science in Society and Social
science and humanities)
Grant recipients in these 7 areas are required to:
deposit peer reviewed research articles or final manuscripts resulting from their
FP7 projects into an online repository;
make their best efforts to ensure open access to these articles within either six
months (twelve months for social sciences and humanities, science in society)
after publication.
http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1680
11

12.
What is a good communication?
Work and coordinate at European level
Be ambitious… and modest
Focus on results and background, not just methodology
Work with communication and media professionals
Use existing relays and organisations
Try to make a difference: originality pays!
Media is not the end: diversify and reach out!
Remember Lasswell’s wwwww:
Who (says) What (to) Whom (in) What Channel (with) What Effect
Define your messages, target and support!
No propaganda!
12

13.
Communication challenges
Today’s challenges in communication include:
New technologies (digital TV, SMS alerts, e-zines, forums,
podcasts, news feeds, clips, webcasts, weblogs): how best to use
them and for which audience?
Beyond “popularisation”: initiatives should aim at a 2-way
communication, not just providing information
European fragmentation… and Europe has to compete with the
US big communication machineries!
Scientists to become communication-minded? Yes, but
European scientists lack professional recognition for engaging with
the public
13

14.
Transnational initiatives
Despite European fragmentation several initiatives
may help you communicating EU-wide:
European Commission (DG RTD)
Cordis
AlphaGalileo
EurekAlert
ECSITE (European Network of
Science Centres and Museums)
EUSCEA (European Science
Events Association)
etc
14

15.
Useful websites
Press room of the European Commission
http://europe.eu.int/comm/press_room/index_en.htm
Press room of Research DG
http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=press&lg=en
Communicating European Research Conferences
http://ec.europa.eu/research/conferences/2004/cer2004/index_en.html
http://ec.europa.eu/research/conferences/2005/cer2005/index_en.html
European Guide on successful communications
http://ec.europa.eu/research/conferences/2004/cer2004/pdf/rtd_2004_guide_succes
s_communication.pdf
15

16.
Useful websites
PCST network
www.upf.edu/pcstacademy/PCST_Network/
Successful communication website
http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/science-communication/index_en.htm
European Forum on science journalism
http://ec.europa.eu/research/conferences/2007/bcn2007/index_en.htm
CORDIS news
http://cordis.europa.eu/news/home_en.html
research*eu magazine
http://ec.europa.eu/research/research-eu/index_en.html 16

17.
Originality pays!
Unusual venues/places
for science communication
Demolition houses, garbage places
Cafés
Schools, universities
Public places, public parks
Museums, art galleries
Shopping malls, department stores, banks
Factories, companies
Lighthouses
In nature: wood, mountain, beaches
Railway station
Amusement/Theme parks
Jazzhouse
Theatres, Opera house
Exhibition Ship
Parliament
Tents, containers
www.euscea.org/ 17

18.
Attitudes towards research
Scientists are dangerous!
“Because of their knowledge, scientists have a power that makes
them dangerous”
Percentage of people who tend to agree
80
Scientists ought to communicate
70
their scientific knowledge better: 85.9% agree
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
MT LV HUN CY EU15 SL PL CZ SK EU10 EE TR BU RO LT
18
Source: Eurobarometer, 2002, http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1220

19.
Attitudes towards research
People are optimistic about science and technology
% of people agreeing that s&t will improve the quality of life of future generations
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
AT
19
LV
IT
FI
T
LT
K
E
Y
K
SI
PT
IE
H
Z
U
EL
PL
SE
BE
ES
SK
EE
L
LU
FR
25
M
D
N
D
C
C
U
C
H
EU
Source: Eurobarometer, 2005, http://ec.europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1220

20.
Attitudes towards research
Where do Europeans get their scientific information?
Television 51
Written press 21
Internet 13
Radio 5
Podcasts 0
0 20 40 60
20
Source: Eurobarometer, 2007, http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_282_en.pdf

21.
Communication @ EC
Communicating research:
Web (EUROPA + CORDIS)
Media events
Research*eu magazine
Research FUTURIS on Euronews
Publications (400 per year incl
DG videos, DVDs, VNRs…)
Public awareness (Science
Week)
Visitors
Events
21

22.
European Commission:
research*eu
Monthly magazine
Focus on ERA, successes, people
Available in English, French,
German and Spanish
120,000+ copies, 1,000,000+ readers
in 150+ countries
A real online version
http://ec.europa.eu/research/research-eu/l
22

23.
European Commission: Futuris on
15 M
EuroNews
viewers /
episode
23

24.
Research on the web:
Europa and CORDIS
CORDIS
information for (potential) FP participants
results and news
http://cordis.europa.eu/home_en.html
Europa - the EU’s ‘portal site’ - is aimed at
all kinds of audiences: policy makers, students, researchers,
industry, press, information multipliers, etc.
general information
http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?lg=en
1.5 million hits and …
300k unique visitors
per month
Growing steadily 24

25.
European Commission: Guide to
Commission
communication and media
relations
Establishing target audiences and
selecting the appropriate media;
Defining key messages;
Preparing and supplying information
to the press;
Building good relationships with
journalists;
Evaluating results;
Maximising the exposure of news
stories and press articles, and
Tapping useful Commission
resources
http://ec.europa.eu/research/conferences/2004/cer2004/pdf/rtd_2004_guide_success_communication.pdf
25

26.
European Commission:
Commission
AthenaWeb
A video library on science
and research in Europe
A resource platform for
science journalists and
producers
www.athenaweb.org/ 26

27.
European Commission:
PIDS
PIDS stands for Project Information Dissemination Service
PIDS enables FP6 Project Coordinators (COs) and Project Officers
(POs) to
Find information on their projects
Store their projects’ deliverables (news, events, results, documents…)
Disseminate these deliverables through CORDIS services (CORDIS
Wire, results database, CORDIS Library…) and in a longer run,
through projects’ mini sites.
PIDS should offer a complete service to assist the Participants – and
the Officers - throughout the whole participation process:
Proposal preparation (foreseen)
Project
Publication
http://cordis.europa.eu/pids/index.cfm?fuseaction=main.home 27

28.
How to write a good press
release?
Have something to say … that is real news… ... and make it sound
interesting
Get to the point. Why should anyone care about this?
Think like a journalist: how can they make a story out of this? What
would you be interested in reading about over your cornflakes?
Give them all they need. Don’t wait until they call you looking for more
28

29.
What is a press release?
A message opportunity. Every press release should have a clear
message, and a clear target audience. Who are we talking to? How
best can we reach them?
An information resource. A press release is the basis for articles on
the day or later. All the facts a journalist needs should be there.
Influencing the news agenda. A good press release will encourage
journalists to write about your subject. Bad press releases mean they
look elsewhere...
29

30.
How to write a good press
release?
BAD:
Commission launches European Round Table
on GMO Safety Research, and publishes
Review of Results of GMO research
Brussels, 3 April 2003
News alert
Science in the Candidate Countries:
GOOD: enthusiastic but with poor prospects, the
young abandon research careers
Important questions for the future of science in an enlarged Europe are raised
GMOs: are there any risks ?
by the first major Commission survey in the Candidate Countries published
today. More than half of all people questioned had little interest in science and
technology, with young men in Cyprus and Hungary the most likely to value
science, and older women in Bulgaria and Turkey the least. Young people are
turning their backs on scientific careers, citing poor salary prospects as the
chief reason. However, eight out of ten people believed that science could
improve their quality of life and cure terminal illnesses and that generally
European research delivered positive results.
Presenting the results of the Eurobarometer on research in the Candidate Countries,
European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin said: "People are more optimistic
about science in the Candidate Countries than in current Member States. They are
more confident in the capacity of science and technology to build a better future. But
they are abandoning research due to a lack of resources and career prospects in
science. The time is ripe for greater investment in research in these countries as part of
an enlarged EU. We must ensure that we invest now in our scientific legacy for future
European generations.”
For this Eurobarometer survey sample questions were fielded in November 2002 to a
total of 12,247 nationals in the 13 candidate countries: Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech
Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia,
Slovenia, and Turkey.
Lacking information…
The Eurobarometer shows there is a clear science divide in society. 56% of Candidate
Countries’ nationals are neither interested in nor informed about science and
technology (EU15: 45%). Only 35% of people expressed an interest in science (EU15:
45%). Two thirds of participants in the survey think they are badly informed about
science and technology.
High interest in science and technology is seen in Cyprus (58%), Hungary (53%),
Malta (50%) and Slovenia (50%) while two countries present a below-average interest:
http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=press&lg=en Bulgaria (34%) and Turkey (22%). Romania is exactly on average: 35%.
….but confident science can improve our quality of life
Demographic analyses show that women are less interested in scientific topics (29%)
30
than are men (41%). The youngest age group has the highest level of interest in
science and technology (44%), compared to 26% in the oldest age group.
Science is seen as a very positive value in the Candidate Countries; citizens expect a
lot from scientific progress. About eight in 10 people in the candidate region believe

31.
How to write a good press
release?
We are competing for journalists’ time and interest. So you
should have real news and make it interesting!
Make your news relevant to people! Relate our message
to things that matter to ordinary people!
Try twice as hard to sell good news
Focus on results, tangible things
Find the angle
31

32.
Main problems with press
releases
Too bureaucratic – in content and language. Nobody cares
about procedures. Nobody cares about “agreed text”. News
is about real people. What does your story mean?
Upside down. Put the interesting bits first. Save the details
for the end.
Missing information. Are all the facts there? Have you got
comparative figures? What will the journalists ask you for?
Jargon. Don’t say “Community Support Programme for
employment”. Do say “EU plan to boost jobs”
32

33.
Making a press release work
Content : give them what they need
Language : write like a journalist
Structure : a hierarchy of information. Most
press releases follow the following structure:
Title
Chapeau
Quote (not always)
Details
Background
33

34.
What makes a good title and
chapeau?
Title: think of it as a possible headline
Short : 2 lines max
Clear : Tell them what it is…straight up
Simple : The details come later
Action : Make something happen…use a verb
Chapeau: a summary of the main story - which stands alone
Ideally 10 lines… maximum 15
Answer the main questions : Who? What? When? Why? How?
….and if possible Where?
Only the main news… the details come later
34

35.
The main text
Keep following the pyramid of information - main messages still come
first.
Provide a quote or two - and make them snappy and relevant
Try to guess the journalists’ questions : Who? What? When? Why?
How? Where?….and what’s new?
Make it easy to read - use headings, bullet points, 3 key themes, a
section of Background at the end…
Details, graphs, tables, analysis, information with a longer shelf-life, can
be incorporated in an annex, rather than all having to be in the press
release
35

36.
Directorate-General for Research
Communication Unit
research-eu@ec.europa.eu
Phone +32-2-295 99 71
Fax +32-2-295 82 20
36