Kerstin Hoppenhaus – Journalist in Residence 2018

German science journalist Kerstin Hoppenhaus was the HITS “Journalist in Residence” from July until December 2018.

Hoppenhaus studied Biology in Mainz, Tübingen, Jena (Germany), and Lyon (France) in addition to studying directing at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg. Since 2005, she has worked as a freelance director of documentaries, research projects, and online endeavors. She is also co-editor of an e-book on the role of online videos in science journalism and science communication.

Kerstin Hoppenhaus arrived at the institute in July. She used the opportunity to meet the HITS researchers from different groups on several occasions, including at the open house event and at an internal interdisciplinary meeting. “I would like to use my stay to better understand the interplay between science and data,” Hoppenhaus stated. “On this basis, my goal is to develop new media formats that are suited to grasping the complexity of the new fields or data and make them accessible to laypeople.”

During her time at the institute, Hoppenhaus intends to discuss areas of conflict between science and society in an internal seminar with HITS researchers. Moreover, there will be a public talk on the media transfer of scientific topics to the public. Finally, Hoppenhaus will visit the numerous university and extramural research institutes in Heidelberg.