News media under attack! What are the effects on science journalism in Europe?

Wednesday, 14 Oktober | 10.30 am – 12.00 noon | Herrenhausen Palace 

  • Katrin Zöfel, science journalist for SRF, Switzerland
  • Anja Martini, head of science program, tagesschau / ARD-aktuell, North German Broadcasting (NDR), Germany
  • Vedrana Simičević, freelance science journalist in Croatia, former staff journalist and editor at the Croatian daily newspaper Novi list, Croatia
  • Andrea Capocci, science journalist for Il Manifesto and Le Science, Italy
  • Samuel Schlaefli, freelance science and environmental journalist, member of SASJ and EFSJ [Moderator]

This panel discussion will address the current political attacks on public and private media in Europe and their implications for science journalism. In Switzerland, a referendum was held in March on whether to drastically reduce citizens’ contributions to public radio and TV, which would fundamentally weaken the media landscape. Similar developments are unfolding in other European countries, and the panel will bring together science journalists from across Europe to share experiences and discuss possible solutions.

Katrin Zöfel

Katrin Zöfel is a science journalist since over 20 years, with an MSc in biology. She was freelancing for different broadcasters before joining the science team at Swiss Public Radio and Television in 2016. „Facts for debates“ is what drives her. The fact that facts can be „alternative“ is what worries her. The current political pressures are felt in her daily work.

Anja Martini, head of science program, tagesschau / ARD-aktuell, North German Broadcasting (NDR)
Photo: NDR

Vedrana Simičević

Vedrana Simičević is an award-winning freelance Croatian journalist and editor who specialises in science, environment, climate and investigative stories. Her articles appeared in National Geographic, BBC Future, Science, New Scientist, Physics Today, The BMJ and Balkan Insight, among others. She is a two-time recipient of the Croatian national award „Velebitska degenija“ for the best environmental investigative story, and she has won several international journalistic investigative grants, including the Balkan Fellowship for journalistic excellence, the Reporters in the Field grant, and a few Journalismfund crossborder grants. She was a FRONTIERS science journalism initiative fellow. 

Andrea Capocci

Andrea Capocci is an Italian science journalist with a background in physics. He covers science, technology, and health for the national daily il manifesto and contributes to several print and online publications, including Le Scienze (the Italian edition of Scientific American), ilpunto.it, and Valori. In 2024, he received the Science Writers in Italy Award for Excellence in Science Journalism for his investigative reporting on manipulated images in the scientific publications of Italy’s Minister of Health, Orazio Schillaci.

Samuel Schlaefli [Moderator]

Samuel Schlaefli is a freelance environmental and science journalist based in Switzerland. His work has been published in GEO, Spiegel Online, Der Standard, NZZ, SRF, WOZ, the Green European Journal, the Globe and Mail, and the Myanmar Times. He is also the co-founder of “treibhaus – der Klimapodcast”, a monthly podcast exploring various aspects of the ongoing climate crisis. He has co-produced and written several short documentaries which have been screened worldwide and were nominated for multiple awards. In 2022, he won the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT) “Prix Média” for outstanding science journalism and was nominated for the “European Science Journalist of the Year Award”. In 2024/25, he was a science journalism fellow at the Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies (AIAS) as part of the Frontiers Fellowship programme of the European Research Council.

Photo: Roar Paaske