Gene editing achieves consistently higher favorability in social and traditional media than GMOs

Autor: Mark Lynas, Selene Adams, Karen Stockert
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2023
Předmět:
Zdroj: GM Crops & Food, Vol 14, Iss 1, Pp 1-8 (2023)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 21645698
2164-5701
2164-5698
44984979
DOI: 10.1080/21645698.2023.2226889
Popis: ABSTRACTWhile GMOs have been the subject of negative discourse over a long time period, it is possible that newer breeding technologies like gene editing are viewed more favorably. We present data for a 5-year period between January 2018 and December 2022, showing that in content specific to agricultural biotechnology, gene editing achieves consistently higher favorability ratings than GMOs in both social and traditional English-language media. Our sentiment analysis shows that favorability is especially positive in social media, with close to 100% favorability achieved in numerous monthly values throughout our 5 years of analysis. We believe that the scientific community can therefore be cautiously optimistic based on current trends that gene editing will be accepted by the public and be able to achieve its promise of making a substantial contribution to future food security and environmental sustainability worldwide. However, there are some recent indications of more sustained downward trends, which may be a cause for concern.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals