1. Introduction -- Part I Core Issues in Science and Health Journalism -- 2 Journalistic conceptualisation of science and health: An overview -- 3 Who speaks for/on science & health? Use of sources by science and health reporters -- 4. Who are science and health journalists? -- 5. Numeracy in science and health journalism -- 6. Uncertainty in the process of risk communication for public health: An integrative theory-based approach -- 7. Muzzling misinformation: Drawing from other disciplines and engaging health and science journalists as research collaborators -- 8 Understanding complexity in science/health: The challenges for two cultures -- Part II Reporting Formats and Audiences -- 9 Inclusion and exclusion in science and health journalism -- 10. The politics and economics of health and science journalism on TV -- 11. Telling science/health stories in audio -- 12. Social media and science/health reporting -- 13. Innovative journalism practices: Insights for reporting science and health issues -- Part III Key science and health topics in the media: Now and in the future -- 14. Journalism for the climate and biodiversity crises -- 15. Media coverage of space science and exploration.-16. Covering major epidemics/pandemics -- 17. News coverage of science and health policy: Impacts on public opinion and policy -- 18. It’s not all bad news: Solutions-oriented journalism approaches -- Part IV The impact of science and health reporting -- 19 Science and health journalism and its effects on audiences -- 20. Science and health journalism in the digital age and its implications on public trust -- 21. Politicisation of science and health topics -- 22. Treading waters: The many socio-ethical challenges of science and health journalism -- 23. Conclusion.

This handbook reviews the extant literature on the most important issues in health and science journalism, with a focus on summarizing the relevant research and identifying key questions that are yet to be answered. It explores challenges and best practices in health and science reporting, formats and audiences, key topics such as climate change, pandemics and space science, and the ethics and political impacts of science and health journalist practice. With numerous international contributions, it provides a comprehensive overview of an emerging area of journalism studies and science communication. Kim Walsh-Childers is Professor of Journalism at University of Florida, USA. Her research focuses on news coverage of health issues and mass media effects on individual health beliefs and behaviors and on health policy development. Merryn McKinnon is an Associate Professor at the Centre for the Public Awareness of Science at the Australian National University. Merryn’s research draws from her background in science, science communication and journalism to explore the factors influencing relationships between science, media and publics.