Michele Berger | Science Writer
  • Welcome
  • Portfolio
  • Experience
  • Testimonials
  • News
  • Contact
  • Search
  • Menu Menu

Experience

You are here: Home1 / Experience
View Resume

Experience/Skills

University of Pennsylvania

September 2015 – Present

Senior Science News Officer

Writes upward of 10 news articles, features, and releases a month, plus manages coverage of scientific research from the School of Medicine, the School of Nursing, the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, and departments in the School of Arts & Sciences including psychology, criminology, anthropology, and others. Has placed clips in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Scientific American, Quartz, BBC Radio, and others. Chairs the One Health Communications group.

Freelance Writer/Editor

June 2008 – Present

Writer and Editor

Fact-check and write for publications and websites including Scientific American, Edible Philly, Audubon magazine, Science Friday, NPR’s StateImpact PA, Everyday Health, Forbes.com, HealthLeaders Magazine. Edit and copy edit specialty cookbooks and books. To date, have edited 14, including The Vegan Table, The Art and Craft of Coffee, Wine Lover’s Devotional and The Cook’s Book of Intense Flavors.

The Weather Channel

June 2013 – August 2015

Science and Environment Editor

Shaped science coverage on weather.com, growing vertical traffic by 20 million pageviews in one year. Oversaw all aspects of section storytelling, including assignment, editing, copy-editing, writing and fact-checking of news stories, video scripts, and long-form articles. Worked with award-winning journalists like David Kushner (Brain Games) and well-known scientists like Michael Mann (Climate Disruption Index). Managed Associate Science Editor until elimination of position in December 2014. Article about levees in New Orleans was a 2015 EPPY Award finalist.

Audubon Magazine

February 2009 – June 2013

Associate Editor, Social Media Manager

Shaped brand direction and voice as a key member of six-person editorial team. Pitched and wrote for every issue, the website, and the blog. Highlights include a cover story, Volunteer Army, about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and running the magazine’s research process. Fact-checked features, departments and front- and back-of-book articles. Assigned and edited articles for website, print packages and a front-of-book section. Copy edited articles in blues before shipping.

Columbia University School of Journalism

January 2009 – December 2012

Adjunct Faculty

Acted as Managing Editor for the magazine and website produced by this graduate workshop, which included maintaining a weekly production schedule for up to 20 articles, with three published daily. Edited articles weekly, monitored student progress, and worked closely with individuals seeking mentorship.

HealthLeaders Media

October 2002 – November 2007

Executive Editor

Received four promotions at this small healthcare publisher. Led two divisions, a role that required managing eight editors, overseeing six product lines, coordinating a national award contest, and setting division financial goals. Previous roles included writing and editing newsletters and editing books.

Software/
Technology

Drupal, WordPress, Audacity, Soundslides, HTML, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop), Photo Mechanic, Google Analytics, Microsoft Office Suite, Google Drive Suite

Honors/Awards

• 2023, Co-chair, University Research Magazine Association (URMA) conference**
• 2022, CASE Regional Award winner, “Historic move ushers in new era of care at Penn”
• 2022, 2021, Facilitator, Knight Science Journalism@MIT Fact-checking Workshop
• 2020, Presenter, URMA Live, about Penn Today series “Side gigs for good”
• 2020, Panelist, National Association of Science Writers (NASW) conference session, “How does your institution #scicomm? A survey of science writers”
• 2019, Moderator, NASW conference session, “Of mice and media: Rethinking how we cover basic science”
• 2016, Deadline Club Finalist, Multimedia, Interactive Graphics & Animation, “Katrina 10”
• 2016, Webby Honoree, Best Individual Editorial Experience, “Katrina 10”
• 2015, EPPY Award Finalist, Best Collaborative Investigative/Enterprise Reporting, “Gold Standard or Old Standard?” with The Lens
• 2012, Metcalf Fellow, one of 10 journalists selected to participate in a week-long science immersion program put on by the Metcalf Institute for Marine & Environmental Reporting
• 2010, Cover Story, “Volunteer Army,” Audubon magazine, Nov-Dec issue
• 2009, Cover Story, “A Person of Note,” (201) Magazine, April issue
• 2003, Editorial Rookie of the Year, presented by HealthLeaders Media, for editorial excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, and creativity

**upcoming

Skills/Associations

• Associations: National Association of Science Writers (NASW), University Research Magazine Association
• Social media: Facebook, Flickr, Hootsuite, Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter
• Conferences: NASW (2020, 2019, 2018, 2016), World Conference of Science Journalists (2017), AAAS Annual Meeting (annually, from 2016 on), Climate Week NYC (2013, 2014), Science Online Climate (2013), Social Media Week (2013, 2012), Metcalf Institute Science Immersion Program (2012)

EDUCATION

  • May 2008

    Columbia Journalism School

    Master of Science in Journalism. Magazine concentration with digital media coursework. Copy chief of school’s annual New York Review of Magazines. Honors on Master’s thesis and in Critical Issues in Journalism.

  • May 2002

    Brandeis University

    Bachelor of Arts in American Studies, Journalism Minor. Graduated cum laude. Dean’s List five consecutive semesters. Captain of Varsity Track & Field team.

PreviousNext

Info

Science writer @Penn. Mom, nature-lover, food-eater, crossworder. Previously @WeatherChannel and @AudubonSociety mag. @Columbiajourn grad.

Current Job

Senior Science News Officer
University of Pennsylvania
Sept. 2015 – Present (7+ years)
Greater Philadelphia Area

Job Description

As a senior member of the editorial team, I write about and publicize the research of Penn scientists. My focus areas include health care, psychology, energy, anthropology, criminology, sociology, and linguistics.

©All Rights Reserved ® Michele Berger | michele (at) bergerjournalist (dot) com
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
Scroll to top
Cleantalk Pixel