A breathtaking history of America’s trail-blazing female science journalists—and the timely
lessons they can teach us about equity access collaboration and persistence. Writing for
Their Lives tells the stories of women who pioneered the nascent profession of science
journalism from the 1920s through the 1950s. Like the hidden figures” of science such as
Dorothy Vaughan and Katherine Johnson these women journalists Marcel Chotkowski LaFollette
writes were also overlooked in traditional histories of science and journalism. But at a time
when science medicine and the mass media were expanding dramatically Emma Reh Jane Stafford
Marjorie Van de Water and many others were explaining theories discoveries and medical
advances to millions of readers via syndicated news stories weekly columns weekend features
and books—and they deserve the recognition they have long been denied. Grounded in extensive
archival research and enlivened by passages of original correspondence Writing for Their Lives
addresses topics such as censorship peer review and news embargoes while also providing
intimate glimpses into the personal lives and adventures of mid-twentieth-century career women.
They were single married or divorced mothers with child-care responsibilities daughters
supporting widowed mothers urban dwellers who lived through and wrote about the Great
Depression World War II and the dawn of the Atomic Age—all the while daring to challenge the
arrogance and misogyny of the male scientific community in pursuit of information that could
serve the public. Written at a time when trust in science is at a premium Writing for Their
Lives is an inspiring untold history that underscores just how crucial dedicated conscientious
journalists are to the public understanding and acceptance of scientific guidance and
expertise.
