[ASA] FW: BREAKING NEWS: James Webb Telescope First Images - your help needed

Mon Jul 11 16:21:08 AEST 2022

Hi everyone,

The Australian Science Media Centre is requesting JWST first-light quotes from astronomers across the country. Last time they reached out (about the launch), only Lisa Kewley and myself were included in a sea of non-diversity which regrettably did little to celebrate our community, so I specifically seek to encourage a broad range of voices to respond to celebrate this monumental occasion.

I’ve included the details below, and if you sign up, they will keep the requests coming directly in future.

Best,

Professor Anna M. Moore
Director, ANU Institute for Space (InSpace)
Vice-Chancellor’s Entrepreneurial Professor
Australian Space Awards Female Leader of the Year
AFR Top 100 Women of Influence
anna.moore at anu.edu.au<mailto:anna.moore at anu.edu.au>

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For fastest response kindly contact
Lisa O’Farrell
Executive Assistant to Professor Anna Moore
The Institute for Space (InSpace)
121 Marcus Clarke, Ground Floor
The Australian National University
Canberra ACT 2600

+61 2 6125 4629
lisa.ofarrell at anu.edu.au<mailto:lisa.ofarrell at anu.edu.au>
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From: AusSMC <Info at smc.org.au>
Date: Monday, 11 July 2022 at 2:45 pm
To:
Subject: BREAKING NEWS: James Webb Telescope First Images - your help needed
Dear space experts,

NASA will soon release some of the deepest and highest-resolution images of the universe to date.

The images have been captured by the James Webb Space Telescope<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/8jFqCk81N9tnZQyjvh25dd-?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>, which launched earlier this year. The images will be released over two days:

  *   Tuesday 7am AEST: US President Joe Biden will release James Webb's first Deep Field image, showing myriad galaxies as they appeared up to 13 billion years in the past. [Livestream<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/EVWfClx1NjioDZw8lT9JAsf?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>]

  *   Wednesday 00:30am AEST: NASA will release a full suite of images of nebula, exoplanets, and galaxy clusters<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/MKXdCmO5glu5Gno3qsBw8oT?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>. [Livestream<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/Vo3oCnx1jniGQoZ2VTZx70q?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>] [High-resolution images<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/Tf26CoV1kpfXJzVRmuOdkoZ?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>]

We are looking to round-up expert comments to help journalists report this story. We understand the timing of this release is very difficult for Aussie experts, but we plan to send out comments first thing tomorrow morning after the images have been released. If you are able to comment on this, please let us know and send through your reaction first thing tomorrow morning – anytime after the 7am AEST announcement and preferably before 10am AEST – so your comments are available for journos as they write about this exciting breaking news.

Can you please let us know if you are able to comment? Because this story will be highly sought after, we need your comments ASAP – between 7am AEST and 10am AEST tomorrow (Tuesday) morning - apologies for unusual deadline.

What we need from you:

  *   A short quote (approx. 200 words)
  *   Your title and affiliation
  *   Any conflicts of interest
  *   Your contact details
  *   Your availability over the next couple of days
  *   Let your university or institutional media team know you have provided a quote

For a better media experience, we encourage you to focus your comments on a critique of the science behind the issue, stay within your area of expertise and avoid excessive jargon or personal attacks.

If you are able to help, please reply to info at smc.org.au<mailto:info at smc.org.au> or call us on 08 7120 8666 as soon as possible. For more information about us, visit smc.org.au<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/0N5OCp81lrtzP80WZh2XfPR?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>.

Apologies if this is outside your area of expertise. If this is the case, please feel free to suggest a suitable colleague.

Below are some hints on how to write a good quote.  For more help on engaging effectively with the media, visit our media portal, sciencemediasavvy.org<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/xn26Cq71mwfOG5y3vTqbB8w?domain=aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com>.

Thanks and best wishes,

Olivia
Australian Science Media Centre

Writing a good quote
The media cycle is fast and intense. Journalists have to deliver copy for publications across a range of platforms including TV, radio, print and online, in the shortest possible time. To give your area of interest the best possible chance of media attention we have developed a short guide for experts who are providing quotes.
1. Be quick. When contacted by the AusSMC, or you spot a media opportunity and make the initial contact with the Centre, please provide your quote as quickly as possible. The Centre will take it by email or phone.
2. Be succinct.  It is a challenge to keep comments on complex issues short. However a succinct paragraph may be the maximum a busy journalist under pressure can take in.
3. Make it interesting. Journalists are looking for your personal insight based on your unique expertise. A good quote can reflect a passion for an issue or could point to an angle that the media may not have reflected before.
4. Be informative. Give only as much information as the journalist will need to make sense of the quote – journalists won’t have time to chase references to other papers.
5. Cut out jargon. Your quote is aimed at the general public rather than your colleagues. Journalists aren’t able to decipher scientific jargon.
6. Provide some images if relevant. It’s true that a picture is worth a thousand words. Picture stories get more prominence in newspapers and a sixty-second story on TV uses 20 different pictures. Graphs and pie charts can be very useful to the media too
7. Be available. The AusSMC may need to check your quote with you before it is sent out and journalists may wish to talk to you about issues raised by your quote.  Please let the AusSMC know your availability and if possible please entrust us with an after hours number for you.  (This will not be given to a 3rd party without your permission).
8. Conflict of interest. The AusSMC aims to be as transparent as possible with regard to any potential conflict of interest that may arise. Please declare any potential conflict of interest you may have on this issue.
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