Society for Science & the Public Selects Staff for Top Editorial Positions

SSP Appoints Eva Emerson as Editor in Chief and Matt Crenson as Managing Editor of the Science News Family of Publications

Mike Mills, chief content officer of the nonprofit organization Society for Science & the Public, which publishes Science News, today announced the appointment of Eva Emerson as editor in chief and Matt Crenson as managing editor of the Science News family of publications. These moves come as SSP begins to carry out a new digital strategy initiative aimed at broadening its audience for science-related news and information.
 
“Eva and Matt are exactly the right people to lead Science News into its digital future, not only with their solid journalistic talents and experience, but also with their dedication to producing thoughtprovoking, objective and compelling science journalism,” Mills said. “Eva combines the essential traits of an effective newsroom leader. She’s a great listener, but she also upholds the highest standards that have long guided Science News. Matt is a creative and tireless science editor who also excels as a manager. And both have an impressive grasp of a wide variety of scientific disciplines.”
 
Emerson, who joined the Science News staff in 2007, previously served as managing editor, where she helped oversee the 2008 redesign of Science News magazine, a biweekly print publication that reaches more than 110,000 paid subscribers, as well as the re-launch of ScienceNews.org and the June 2011 launch of SN Prime, a weekly tablet magazine for the iPad. A native of Los Angeles, Emerson previously edited the University of Southern California College alumni magazine and wrote about science for campus publications. She has also held staff positions at the Magic School Bus television show, the Honolulu Weekly and the California Science Center. She is the coauthor of a book of classroom activities, Naturescope Kit: Habitats, published by the National Wildlife Federation and has freelanced for UPI, Discovery.com, ScienceNOW and Highlights for Children. She earned a B.A. in biological sciences and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
 
Crenson, who joined Science News as deputy managing editor for news in 2010, started his journalism career as a science writer for the Dallas Morning News. He later worked in New York for the Associated Press as a science editor and national writer, and as a producer for ABC News. From 2007 to 2009 he was content manager for 23andMe, a Mountain View, Calif., company that offers genetic testing directly to consumers. He received his undergraduate degree in geology from Brown University and earned a master’s degree in hydrology at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. During the 2003–2004 academic year, he was a John S. Knight journalism fellow at Stanford University, where he studied linguistics and genetics as a means of understanding human prehistory.
 
Emerson and Crenson have been serving in their new roles on an interim basis since August.
 
Through the Science News family of publications, SSP has a long tradition of providing concise, intelligent, credible science journalism. Science News is a vital element of the science community and a key component of SSP. Published since 1922, the biweekly print publication reaches more than 110,000 dedicated subscribers. Now updated continuously online, Science News attracts nearly five million unique online viewers annually and Science News for Kids attracts more than three million students, parents, and educators annually. Science News is also available on the Kindle, and as Science News Prime on the iPad.
About Society for Science & the Public
Society for Science & the Public (SSP) is one of the nation’s oldest non-profit membership organizations dedicated to public engagement in science and science education. Established in 1921, SSP is a leading advocate for the understanding and appreciation of science and the vital role it plays in human advancement. Through its acclaimed education competitions, including the Intel Science Talent Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and the Broadcom MASTERS, and its award-winning publications, Science News and Science News for Kids, as well as its recently released weekly e-publication for the iPad, Science News Prime, Society for Science & the Public is committed to inform, educate, and inspire.
 
For more information about SSP and its work, please visit societyforscience.org or follow SSP on Facebook: facebook.com/societyforscience and through Twitter: twitter.com/Society4Science. Become a member of the Society at societyforscience.org/join
CONTACT
Sarah Wood
Society for Science & the Public
(202) 872-5110