Bratton, Luke, Adams, Rachel C.  ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8053-0671, Challenger, Aimée, Boivin, Jacky ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9498-1708, Bott, Lewis ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4926-1231, Chambers, Christopher D. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6058-4114 and Sumner, Petroc ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0536-0510
2019.
The association between exaggeration in health-related science news and academic press releases: a replication study.
Wellcome Open Research
4
, 148.
10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15486.2
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Abstract
Background: Exaggerations in health news were previously found to strongly associate with similar exaggerations in press releases. Moreover, such press release exaggerations did not appear to attract more news. Methods: Here we tested the replicability of these findings in a new cohort of news and press releases based on research in UK universities in 2014 and 2015. Press releases and news were compared to their associated peer-reviewed articles to define exaggeration in advice, causal claims and human inference from non-human studies. Results: We found that the association between news and press releases did not replicate for advice exaggeration, while this association did replicate for causal claims and human inference from non-human studies. There was no evidence for higher news uptake for exaggerated press releases, consistent with previous results. Base exaggeration rates were lower for human inference from non-human studies, possibly reflecting the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research in the UK. Conclusions: Overall, the picture remains that the strength of news statements is normally associated with the strength of press release statements, and without evidence that exaggerated statements get significantly more news.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Status: | Published |
| Schools: | Schools > Psychology |
| Publisher: | F1000Research |
| ISSN: | 2398-502X |
| Date of First Compliant Deposit: | 19 November 2019 |
| Date of Acceptance: | 18 November 2019 |
| Last Modified: | 06 Jan 2024 04:22 |
| URI: | https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/126942 |
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