The importance of randomized clinical trials is acknowledged by most physicians, professional organizations, and federal agencies. Clinical trials influence practice and are at the pinnacle of the evidence pyramid, either alone or as part of meta-analyses. However, many threats to the validity and scientific integrity of clinical trials can occur in their design, implementation, analysis, and r...

According to several 2008 reports, blogging continues to attract writers and readers (Comscore Media Matrix, 2008; eMarketer, 2008; Sifry, 2008; Universal McCann, 2008). This form of Web content creation has matured beyond public personal journaling to support citizen journalism or journalism produced by independent bloggers unaffiliated with professional newsrooms (Lenhart & Fox, 2006). The po...

Form and style matter in journalism. To a large extent a newspaper’s identity is determined by its appearance and its tone. Readers want to feel comfortable with a paper’s design, its departmentalization and its use of illustrations, colour and headlines. The style of writing and the form of stories should please them. ‘Reading someone else’s newspaper is like sleeping with someone else’s wife’...

BACKGROUND Newspaper stories can impact behaviours, particularly in relation to research participation. It is therefore important to understand the narratives presented and ways in which these are received. Some work to date assumes journalism transmits existing medical knowledge to a passive audience. This study aimed to explore how newspaper articles present stories about medical research and...

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