Science, Storytelling, and Trust with Kristen V. Brown

This week, Jaansi sits down with healthcare journalist Kristen V. Brown to explore the role of science journalism in shaping public trust, health decision-making, and collective understanding. Together, they discuss how culture and politics influence scientific research, why women’s health remains underfunded, and how journalists can responsibly report on polarized topics like vaccines without deepening mistrust. Join us to learn about the essentials for communicating complex science in an increasingly fragmented media landscape!
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Kristen V. Brown is a healthcare journalist currently working on a book about fertility. As a Hearst Fellow at the Albany Times Union and the San Francisco Chronicle, a staffer at Bloomberg and Gizmodo, and a Webby nominated podcaster, she has covered women’s health and the cultural forces that shape medical knowledge. Trained in arts and culture journalism, Brown brings a humanities-driven lens to science reporting and has written extensively on vaccines, reproductive health, and consumer genetics.
Check out Kristen's work: ​www.kristenvbrown.com/