新聞中的「偽科學」內容分析研究

Discovering the Unexplored in Science Communication: Pseudoscience News

科學傳播領域早已累積相當數量之文獻討論科學新聞，但新聞中呈現的「偽科學」（pseudoscience）內容仍少探討。一般來說，「偽科學」指表面上是科學性資訊，實質上卻是違反科學規律或邏輯的論述。本研究即在探討「偽科學」新聞的內容，檢視台灣報紙新聞報導後發現，最常見的偽科學主題為超自然之靈異現象，其他與偽科學相關的新聞議題包括：療效未經證實的偏方、非正規醫學建議的減肥偏方、占卜算命或星座運勢分析、風水地理、民俗／民間傳統療法、能量或磁場對人體健康的影響，以及外星人與地球末日預言等主題。本研究之發現有助於了解目前相關報導之呈現方式，也初步確立偽科學的新聞編碼類目可行性，包含其主題分類以及論點與論述呈現方式。

The purpose of this study is to explore the rarely addressed topic of pseudoscience in news stories. Pseudoscience refers to claims that are presented as scientific but lack supporting evidence or do not adhere to a valid scientific methodology or plausibility. The analysis of major Taiwanese newspapers reveals that the news topics most often involving pseudoscience claims include paranormal (or weird things) and (herbal) therapies that are not formal medical practices. In summary, the current study identifies and describes the categories of pseudoscience news, which sets forward the discussion of pseudoscience for future research in journalism and mass communication.