In de krant. Hoe vinden archeologische vondsten hun weg naar de samenleving?

Samenvatting

Archaeology in the newspapers. How do newspapers present archaeological research? An answer to this question was sought by analysing a set of articles from the daily newspaper NRC Handelsblad. I have distinguished five stages that can be discussed in an article: find, research methods, conclusion, broader meaning and action. I also examine whether Dutch or international topics were chosen. The results I have discussed with three science journalists.
In NRC Handelsblad, research methods are less frequently discussed than finds or conclusions, but are nonetheless deemed important. A find is only interesting after it has been soundly studied; a conclusion has value when it is well substantiated. Attaching a broader meaning to a find or conclusion is mostly left to the reader. Dutch archaeological research hardly reaches NRC Handelsblad, because it is not published in international top-class journals. Finally, the personal interests of the journalists play no small part in the process.