--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The big journals and Nobel laureates are…" description: "\"The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of Congressional leaders in science journalism.\" — Michael Pollan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png" --- # The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of… ![“The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of Congressional leaders in science journalism.” quote by Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png) > “The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of Congressional leaders in science journalism.” [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highlights how top science journalists wield influence similar to political leaders in shaping public perception of science. **In simple terms:** Science journalists can be as powerful as politicians. Key Takeaway Recognize the influence of elite science media. Themes media influence science communication politics leadership Mood critical analytical Type observational commentary When to use this quote - policy debates - public health messaging - research funding decisions Key Concepts agenda setting public perception authority Questions to Reflect On - How does media authority affect scientific discourse? - What responsibilities accompany such influence? A Different Perspective Their impact can be limited by audience trust and media bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Nobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nobel/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [In general, science journalism concerns itself with what has been published in a handful of peer-reviewed journals - Nature, Cell, The New England Journal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-general-science-journalism-concerns-itself-with-what-has-been/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The Congressional leaders set the agenda for journalism; it's not the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-congressional-leaders-set-the-agenda-for-journalism-it-s-not-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The stories about epidemics that are told in the American press - their plots and tropes - date to the nineteen-twenties, when modern research…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-stories-about-epidemics-that-are-told-in-the-american-press-their/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“One informed theory holds that the secret procedures have a specific, defined role for a small, preselected set of congressional leaders—perhaps as small as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-m-graff/one-informed-theory-holds-that-the-secret-procedures-have-a-specific/) [Garrett M. Graff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-m-graff/) > [ I told all four \[Congressional leaders\] that there are going to be some times where we don't agree with each other, but that's OK.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-told-all-four-congressional-leaders-that-there-are-going-to-be-some/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [I think the most critical needs of the African-American communities aren't being addressed primarily because of decisions being made by Republican Congressional leaders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-harris-perry/i-think-the-most-critical-needs-of-the-african-american-communities/) [Melissa Harris-Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-harris-perry/) > [Now that the midterm elections are over, President Obama has invited congressional leaders from both parties to a meeting at the White House tomorrow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/now-that-the-midterm-elections-are-over-president-obama-has-invited/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [ Congressional leaders on the Republican side are hoping chief of staff is \[Reince\] Priebus. They see Priebus as somebody who they can clearly work… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-stephanopoulos/congressional-leaders-on-the-republican-side-are-hoping-chief-of/) [George Stephanopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-stephanopoulos/) > [The bottom line is more tax money is going to be needed. Just how much will be the primary issue on the agenda when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-gumbel/the-bottom-line-is-more-tax-money-is-going-to-be-needed-just-how-much/) [Bryant Gumbel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-gumbel/) > [I was asked the other day if I would be interested in the Nobel Prize, but I think that for me it would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/i-was-asked-the-other-day-if-i-would-be-interested-in-the-nobel-prize/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [Research is the live heart of the scientific life ... Greatness of position, respect for past accomplishments, the Nobel Prize itself -- none of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivian-gornick/research-is-the-live-heart-of-the-scientific-life-greatness-of/) [Vivian Gornick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivian-gornick/) > [Alfred Nobel stipulated that no distinction of race or colour will determine who received of his generosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/alfred-nobel-stipulated-that-no-distinction-of-race-or-colour-will/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [The Nobel is a ticket to one's own funeral. No one has ever done anything after he got it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/the-nobel-is-a-ticket-to-one-s-own-funeral-no-one-has-ever-done/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Alfred Nobel believed that social changes are brought about slowly, and sometimes by indirect means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertha-von-suttner/alfred-nobel-believed-that-social-changes-are-brought-about-slowly/) [Bertha von Suttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertha-von-suttner/) > [Physicist Isador Isaac Rabi, who won a Nobel Prize for inventing a technique that permitted scientists to probe the structure of atoms and molecules…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-saul-wurman/physicist-isador-isaac-rabi-who-won-a-nobel-prize-for-inventing-a/) [Richard Saul Wurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-saul-wurman/) ## More by Michael Pollan > [“In the same way that the picturesque designers were always careful to include some reminder of our mortality in their gardens -- a ruin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-the-same-way-that-the-picturesque-designers-were-always-careful-to/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [My hope is that if people have the knowledge, and if they actually see where their food comes from and have access to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/my-hope-is-that-if-people-have-the-knowledge-and-if-they-actually-see/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [The problem is that we let special-occasion food become everyday food. That goes for soda and french fries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-problem-is-that-we-let-special-occasion-food-become-everyday-food/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Every peasant cuisine has incredible ingenious tricks for getting a lot of nutrition out of a small amount of ingredients. There are people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/every-peasant-cuisine-has-incredible-ingenious-tricks-for-getting-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“In ancient Greece, the word for “cook,” “butcher,” and “priest” was the same—mageiros—and the word shares an etymological root with “magic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-ancient-greece-the-word-for-cook-butcher-and-priest-was-the-same/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [In the end I'm still a writer. I'm still a journalist, and my first responsibility is to my readers. That's where I have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/in-the-end-i-m-still-a-writer-i-m-still-a-journalist-and-my-first/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Seeds have the power to preserve species, to enhance cultural as well as genetic diversity, to counter economic monopoly and to check the advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/seeds-have-the-power-to-preserve-species-to-enhance-cultural-as-well/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“The bubble logic driving tulipomania has since acquired a name: “the greater fool theory.” Although by any conventional measure it is folly to pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-bubble-logic-driving-tulipomania-has-since-acquired-a-name-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Of the seven deadly sins, surely it is pride that most afflicts the gardener.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/of-the-seven-deadly-sins-surely-it-is-pride-that-most-afflicts-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Eat with consciousness. When you eat with consciousness, and you know what you're eating, and you eat it in full appreciation of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/eat-with-consciousness-when-you-eat-with-consciousness-and-you-know/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [This is part of human nature, the desire to change consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/this-is-part-of-human-nature-the-desire-to-change-consciousness/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“...whenever I hear people say clean food is expensive, I tell them it's actually the cheapest food you can buy. That always gets their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/whenever-i-hear-people-say-clean-food-is-expensive-i-tell-them-it-s/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Imagine if we had a food system that actually produced wholesome food. Imagine if it produced that food in a way that restored the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/imagine-if-we-had-a-food-system-that-actually-produced-wholesome-food/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“CONSULT YOUR GUT.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/consult-your-gut/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) [Explore all 584 Michael Pollan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) ## More Journalism quotes > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Having small children and being an investigative reporter would seem like a difficult mix, but it worked well for me. I was often working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/having-small-children-and-being-an-investigative-reporter-would-seem/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [I didn't get how big it was until I went home, turned on the television and saw it on all the news, and later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-didn-t-get-how-big-it-was-until-i-went-home-turned-on-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [One lesson to learn is that the press and the broadcasters are not neutral. And it seems we have to learn it each time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-loach/one-lesson-to-learn-is-that-the-press-and-the-broadcasters-are-not/) [Ken Loach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-loach/) > [If you want to change something by Tuesday, theater is no good. Journalism is what does that. But, if you want to just alter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/if-you-want-to-change-something-by-tuesday-theater-is-no-good/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Newspapers have an extraordinary amount of local content, including real estate listings and restaurant reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimbal-musk/newspapers-have-an-extraordinary-amount-of-local-content-including/) [Kimbal Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimbal-musk/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [In essence, I see the value of journalism as resting in a twofold mission: informing the public of accurate and vital information, and its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/in-essence-i-see-the-value-of-journalism-as-resting-in-a-twofold/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Drill in exact translation is an excellent way of disposing the mind against that looseness and exaggeration with which the sensationalists have corrupted our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/drill-in-exact-translation-is-an-excellent-way-of-disposing-the-mind/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [People think they're getting objective information, but they're not. They're getting news wrapped up in opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-samuels/people-think-they-re-getting-objective-information-but-they-re-not/) [Lynn Samuels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-samuels/) [Browse all 8,189 Journalism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of Congressional leaders in science journalism.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Pollan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are-the-equivalent-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Journalism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are-the-equivalent-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/michael-pollan-408_journalism_the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are_2734448.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The big journals and Nobel laureates are the equivalent of Congressional leaders in science journalism.” — Michael Pollan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Pollan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The big journals and Nobel laureates...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are-the-equivalent-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-big-journals-and-nobel-laureates-are-the-equivalent-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```