The Active Neutral: A Tightrope Walk for Trust

Is the main goal of science communication to persuade people to act? This is a question that came to my mind during a meeting with an Munich Science Communication Lab (MSCL) expert. The answer from the expert was a clear “No.” To be honest, the very existence of a communication group focused purely on scientific ethics and access was new to me, and it took time to understand their complex role. The expert said their Job is not to force action, but to give access to the knowledge they produce. This showed me the key rule in German academia: the main job is giving information access, not changing behavior.

This idea is very different from other communication models where the goal is just to persuade or to derive actions like purchasing. MSCL sees its role as a neutral provider of good information. They believe information is a public resource that everyone should have the right to use. That is why their biggest challenge is reaching the “unreached”-people who don’t usually see science news. The focus is on fair access, treating knowledge as a public good that all citizens can use independently.

The clear rule about giving access vs. persuading is the ethical core of the Lab. If MSCL tried to persuade too much, they would risk becoming a political group instead of a neutral academic center. By keeping this rule, they protect their credibility-which is their most important asset in the fake news era. I think they put the responsibility for action back on the individual, making the public discussion stronger instead of trying to control it.

The MSCL experience taught me that the real power of communication comes from being neutral. The mission is not to tell people what to do, but to make sure the most reliable sound (good knowledge) is clearly heard by everyone. However, this pursuit of neutrality is a constant, difficult challenge for all public media organizations. The boundary of neutrality is often ambiguous, and simply providing passive information risks eroding the media’s value and influence in society. This strong focus on access and trust as the highest professional job is a big lesson for me as a future communicator. The true skill may well lie in the balance between impartiality and active social responsibility.