Genetic Engineering and the Media

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Recommended: Do pros outweigh cons with genetic modification

Genetic engineering and its related fields have stimulated an extremely controversial scientific debate about cloning for the last decade. With such a wide range of public opinions, it is hard to find any middle ground. Some feel that improving the genes of future children will help mankind make a major evolutionary step forward. Others agree that there could be dangerous unforeseen consequences in our genetic futures if we proceed with such endeavors. A third group warns that the expense of genetic enhancement will further separate the wealthy from the poor and create a super race. Popular magazines and the Internet are two of the major arenas in which this debate has been hotly contested. Both of these media sources are utilized by a wide range of audiences, and thus present a wide range of arguments. However, because of their audiences, magazines tend to be more moderate in their opinions and in their presentation of information, while Internet sources tend to vary in their opinions as well as the information provided.

Depending on the magazine, the opinions of authors can be liberal, conservative, or anywhere in between. However, almost all mainstream publications place limits on how far left or right the opinions will reach. After a certain point, the magazine's potential audience begins to decrease rapidly and will not generate enough income to make a profit. Therefore, the most popular magazines (i.e. TIME, Newsweek) seek to present the most popular opinions. Some mainstream magazines extend to the far left (Sierra) or right (National Review), but they have a limited audience. In the interest of making a profit, marketing strategy is simply an issue of supply and demand. Thus, when thes...

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..." http://www.zolatimes.com/V5.1/genetic_enhancement.htm, January 1, 2001.

Costin, Joshua, "The Garry Laboratory Homepage," http://www.tulane.edu/~dmsander/GarryHomePage.html, November 29, 1995.

Human Genome Project. "Gene Therapy," http://genome/rtc/riken.go.jp/hgmis/medicine/genetherapy.html, September 27, 2001.

Mackey, Ian, "International Gene Therapy Sites," http://www.uq.edu.au/vdu/gtintlnk.htm, 2001.

Murray Co. "Should Humans be Cloned? Yes, of Course!" www.murrayco.com/forum/should_human_beings_be_cloned.hyml, April 8, 2001.

Reuters Ltd. "Gene therapy disappoints so farm US experts say. http://www.purefood.org/News/genether.html. 1997.

Ritchie, T; Assouline, J. "University of Iowa Center for Gene Therapy." http://genetherapy.genetics.uiowa.edu/. 2001.

USA Prescriptions Inc. "SafeWeb Medical." http://www.safewebmedical.com/. 2001.

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