The Union of Concerned Scientists has just released a report on the media policies at federal agencies, in order to assess “the degree of freedom with which science is communicated at federal agencies.” The nonprofit organization analyzed 15 regulatory and science agencies’ policies governing communication with the media and the public, and then surveyed a cross-section of federal scientists to learn how the policies are implemented.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was the only agency to earn an “A” grade from UCS for its policy (though its performance is rated “needs improvement”), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration the lone recipient of an “F.” Here’s UCS’s explanation of the variation:



As for the importance of having a culture of openness, here’s UCS’s explanation of why it matters:



UCS recommends that the next administration “require all federal agencies to adopt policies that ensure free and open communication between scientists, the media, policy makers, and the public.” It specifically urges that these policies respect scientists’ rights to express their personal views as long as they make it clear they’re not speaking on behalf of the agency and enshrine their “right to review, approve, and comment publicly on the final version of any document or publication that significantly relies on their research, identifies them as an author or contributor, or purports to represent their scientific opinions.” UCS and the Government Accountability Project have developed a model media policy that’s worth taking a look at.

UCS consistently does great work researching conditions at federal agencies, which may get less attention than the White House and Capitol Hill do but are extremely influential in determining how clean our air and water are, how safe our drugs and consumer products are, and what kind of planet we’ll leave to future generations. They’ve documented many of the alarming instances of political interference with science in recent years, and are now also reminding us that less-dramatic policies and practices, like those governing media relations, can also have a big impact.