Wendy Zukerman is an Australian-American

science journalist Science journalism conveys reporting about science to the public. The field typically involves interactions between scientists, journalists, and the public. Origins Modern science journalism dates back to '' Digdarshan'' (means showing the d ...

and podcaster. She is best known as the host of ''

Science Vs ''Science Vs'' is a science podcast created and hosted by Wendy Zukerman. The show takes a myth-busting approach to controversial topics and current events, with fact checking and research of the scientific literature, as well as interviewing re ...

'', a program that dissects areas of scientific controversy and public confusion.

About

Zukerman was born in the United States but raised in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia. She attended

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

and received a

biomedical science Biomedical sciences are a set of sciences applying portions of natural science or formal science, or both, to develop knowledge, interventions, or technology that are of use in healthcare or public health. Such disciplines as medical microbio ...

and law degree. Her brother is actor

Ashley Zukerman Ashley Zukerman (born 30 December 1983) is an Australian-American actor known for playing Dr. Charlie Isaacs on WGN America's ''Manhattan'', Senior Constable Michael Sandrelli in Australian drama series ''Rush'', and Jesse Banks in the Australia ...

, and they were raised Jewish. She has worked for the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

on the documentary television program, ''

Catalyst Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...

'', and the consumer affairs television program ''

The Checkout ''The Checkout'' was an Australian consumer affairs television series. The show's first series of 10 episodes premiered on 21 March 2013 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC TV. A second series consisting of ...

''. Additionally, she has written for many different publications including ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publishe ...

'' magazine, ''

Cosmos The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity. The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...

'' magazine, ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'', ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

'', and '' Saturday Paper.'' In 2014 and 2015, she spoke at Storyology, an annual festival of journalism and media. In March 2018, she spoke at a

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

, in a panel event called, "What Podcasts Ate for Dinner". In 2021, Zukerman was amongst the first nominees of The Podcast Academy's new "Ambie" awards. She was one of seven nominees for the Best Host award.

''Science Vs''

Since October 2015, her podcast ''Science Vs'' has been produced by

Gimlet Media Gimlet Media LLC is a digital media company and podcast network, focused on producing narrative podcasts and headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. The company was founded in 2014 by Alex Blumberg and Matthew Lieber, who serve as the company's CEO ...

, a

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

-based digital media company. The show was previously produced and distributed by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

(ABC) as part of ABC Radio's First Run podcast program. The podcast works on communicating science to non-scientists. The show takes a myth-busting approach, and topics on the show generally come from controversial topics or current events. Episode topics have included immigration, gun control, ghosts, climate change, acne, and antidepressants, among others. Zukerman has said that the idea for ''Science Vs'' came from news headlines about

Gwyneth Paltrow Gwyneth Kate Paltrow (; born ) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Paltrow gained notice for her early work in films ...

wanting women to participate in a "health practice" of

vaginal steaming Vaginal steaming, sometimes shortened to V-steaming, and also known as wormwood steaming, is an alternative health treatment whereby a woman squats or sits over steaming water containing herbs such as mugwort, rosemary, wormwood, and basil. It ha ...

, which she thought could combine science with humor. Zukerman summarized her podcast's position against

false equivalence False equivalence is an informal fallacy in which an equivalence is drawn between two subjects based on flawed or false reasoning. This fallacy is categorized as a fallacy of inconsistency. Colloquially, a false equivalence is often called "com ...

s, saying, "If there's a 95 percent consensus among scientists, you report the consensus."

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zukerman, Wendy 21st-century American journalists 21st-century Australian journalists American emigrants to Australia American women podcasters American podcasters Australian women podcasters Australian podcasters Australian women scientists Jewish women scientists Journalists from Melbourne Living people Monash University alumni People from Melbourne Science communicators Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women Australian people of Peruvian descent Australian people of Israeli descent American people of Israeli descent American people of Peruvian descent