Dr A.L. (Alice) Fleerackers
Faculty of Humanities
Capaciteitsgroep Media & Cultuur
Area of expertise: journalism, science communication, open science, digital media, scholarly publishing
Visiting address
- Turfdraagsterpad 1
Postal address
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Postbus 94550
1090 GN Amsterdam
Contact details
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Profile
Alice Fleerackers (she/her) is Assistant Professor of Journalism and Civic Engagement in the Media Studies Department at the University of Amsterdam. Her research examines the intersections of journalism, health and science communication, and scholarly communication. She is a member of the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis and the Empowering Language sector plan programme, and an Affiliated Researcher of the interdisciplinary climate institute SEVEN. She also contributes to connecting science and society through her role as a Research Lead of the UvA's newly formed research priority area, Shaping Interfaces Between Science and the Public.
Beyond her work at UvA, Alice is a Research Associate at the Scholarly Communications Lab, Research Affiliate of the Public Knowledge Project, Vice President of the Public Communication of Science and Technology Network (PCST), and member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Science Communication. An (occasional) freelance writer, she has over 12 years of experience writing for outlets such as The Open Notebook, Globe and Mail, National Post, and Nautilus, among others.
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Publications
2026
- Chtena, N., Pasquetto, I., Fleerackers, A., Pinfield, S., Benson Marshall, M., & Alperin, J. P. (2026). How moderation makes science: Precautionary valuation and boundary-making in the early circulation of research. Engaging Science, Technology, and Society, 12. https://doi.org/10.17351/ests2023.3187
- Fleerackers, A., Nguyen, A., Hermida, A., & Oransky, I. (2026). Holding science to account: A qualitative study of practices and challenges of watchdog science journalism. Science Communication. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470261459855
- Laura Egelhofer, J., Mede, N. G., Medvecky, F., Carruthers, T. C., Fleerackers, A., Garcia-Guerrero, M., & Okebe, B. (2026). Walking the line: balancing benefits of public engagement against the risks of harassment and attack. Journal of Science Communication, 25(4), Article C02. https://doi.org/10.22323/367720260408065209
- Oliveira, M. B., Hafiz, M., Fleerackers, A., Nunes, L. B., & Barata, G. (2026). Science News Agencies in SciComm: an exploratory index for evaluating and enhancing public interest in mass-distributed press releases. Journal of Science Communication, 25(1), A05. https://doi.org/10.22323/147220251226071311
2025
Benson Marshall, M. T., Pinfield, S., Abbott, P., Cox, A., Alperin, J. P., Chtena, N., & Fleerackers, A. (2025). “It’s messy and it’s massive”: How has the open science debate developed in the post-COVID era? F1000Research, 14, Article 500. https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.162577.2 [details]- Chtena, N., Alperin, J. P., Morales, E., Fleerackers, A. L., Dorsch, I., Pinfield, S., & Simard, M.-A. (2025). Towards an inclusive Open Science: examining EDI and public participation in policy documents across Europe and the Americas. Royal Society Open Science, 24. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240857
- Chtena, N., Alperin, J. P., Pinfield, S., Fleerackers, A., & Pasquetto, I. V. (2025). Preprint servers and journals: Rivals or allies? Journal of Documentation, 81(4), 847-869. https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-09-2024-0215 [details]
- Fleerackers, A. L., Engelmann, I., Riedlinger, M., Osman, K., Vodden, L., Esau, K., Srinivas, A., & Bruns, A. (2025). Amplifying the news: An analysis of the factors driving republication and Facebook engagement with news. Journalism Practice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2025.2545440
- Fleerackers, A., Chtena, N., Oliveira, M., Dorsch, I., Alperin, J. P., & Pinfield, S. (2025). Open data in data journalism: Opportunities and future directions. Canadian Journal of Communication, 50(1), 145-161. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2023-0040 [details]
- Fleerackers, A., Moorhead, L. L., & Alperin, J. P. (2025). “I’d like to think I’d be able to spot one if I saw one”: How science journalists navigate predatory journals. Journalism Practice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2025.2551984
- Fleerackers, A., Moorhead, L. L., Alperin, J. P., Riedlinger, M., & Maggio, L. A. (2025). From impact metrics and open science to communicating research: Journalists’ awareness of academic controversies. PLoS ONE, 20, Article e0309274. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309274
- Fleerackers, A., Ratcliff, C. L., Wicke, R., King, A. J., & Jensen, J. D. (2025). Public understanding of preprints: How audiences make sense of unreviewed research in the news. Public Understanding of Science, 34(2), 154-171. https://doi.org/10.1177/09636625241268881
- Ratcliff, C. L., Fleerackers, A. L., Wicke, R., King, A. J., & Jensen, J. D. (2025). Using preprint sources in science news: Do transparent disclosures enhance credibility? Science Communication. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/4u2z7_v2, https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470251363191
- Wicke, R., Ratcliff, C. L., Fleerackers, A., Wang, Y., King, A. J., & Jensen, J. D. (2025). Preprints in COVID-19 news coverage: Comparing student and general population perceptions of preliminary science about booster vaccination. Risk Analysis, 45(10), 3018-3029. https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.70071 [details]
2024
- Alperin, J. P., Fleerackers, A. L., Riedlinger, M., & Haustein, S. (2024). Second-order citations in altmetrics: A case study analyzing the audiences of COVID-19 research in the news and on social media. Quantitative Science Studies. https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00298
- Benson Marshall, M., Pinfield, S., Abbott, P., Cox, A., Alperin, J. P., Barata, G., Chtena, N., Dorsch, I., Fleerackers, A. L., Oliveira, M., & Peters, I. (2024). The impact of COVID-19 on the debate on open science: A qualitative analysis of published materials from the period of the pandemic. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03804-w
- Céspedes, L., Fleerackers, A. L., & Maggio, L. A. (2024). “Giving them the best information I could with whatever I had at hand”. Physicians’ online health communication practices in a post-normal science context. JCOM, Journal of Science Communication, 23(06). https://doi.org/10.22323/2.23060204
- Fleerackers, A. L., Chtena, N., Pinfield, S., Alperin, J. P., Barata, G., Oliveira, M., & Peters, I. (2024). Making science public: A review of journalists’ use of Open Access research. F1000Research. https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.133710.1
- Fleerackers, A. L., Shores, K., Chtena, N., & Alperin, J. P. (2024). Unreviewed science in the news: The evolution of preprint media coverage from 2014–2021. Quantitative Science Studies. https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00282
- Kankaria, S., Fleerackers, A. L., Escalón, E., Stengler, E., Wilkinson, C., & Kreutzer, T. (2024). Teaching to bridge research and practice: Perspectives from science communication educators across the world. JCOM, Journal of Science Communication, 23(2), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.23020803
- Maggio, L. A., Céspedes, L., & Fleerackers, A. L. (2024). “My doctor self and my human self”: A qualitative study of physicians' presentation of self on social media. Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.15384
- Oliveira, M., Barata, G., Fleerackers, A. L., Alperin, J. P., Falade, B., & Bauer, M. (2024). Bridging science communication and open science—Working inclusively toward the common good. Frontiers in Communication. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2024.1473268
2023
- Atef, N., Fleerackers, A. L., & Alperin, J. P. (2023). Why do health professionals create content on social media? uses and gratifications of Egyptian “physician vloggers” on YouTube. Journal of Social Media in Society. https://www.thejsms.org/index.php/JSMS/article/view/1287
2026
- Fahy, D., Fleerackers, A., Nepote, A. C., & Wang, G. (2026). Transitions in science communication: agendas, approaches, and voices. Journal of Science Communication, 25(5). https://doi.org/10.22323/416920260621110238
- Verhoeven, L. L. A., & Fleerackers, A. (2026). A good climate for solutions? The adaptation of solutions journalism within Surinamese climate journalism. SocArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/5bt8z_v1
2024
- Alperin, J. P., Shores, K., Fleerackers, A. L., & Chtena, N. (2024). Stark decline in journalists’ use of preprints postpandemic [commentary]. Science Communication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470241285405
- Fleerackers, A. L., Nguyen, A., McKinnon, M. (Ed.), & Walsh-Childers, K. (Ed.) (2024). Treading waters: The many socio-ethical challenges of science and health journalism. In Handbook of science and health journalism Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49084-2_22
2025
- Fleerackers, A. L. (2025). Using Open Data to Sharpen Science Stories. Web publication or website, The Open Notebook. https://www.theopennotebook.com/2025/01/14/using-open-data-to-sharpen-science-stories/
This list of publications is extracted from the UvA-Current Research Information System. Questions? Ask the library or the Pure staff of your faculty / institute. Log in to Pure to edit your publications. Log in to Personal Page Publication Selection tool to manage the visibility of your publications on this list. -
Ancillary activities
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Freelance writer
See alicefleerackers.com/portfolio -
PCST Network
Vice President + Co-Chair, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility Committee
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Freelance writer
Benson Marshall, M. T., Pinfield, S., Abbott, P., Cox, A., Alperin, J. P., Chtena, N., & Fleerackers, A. (2025). “It’s messy and it’s massive”: How has the open science debate developed in the post-COVID era? F1000Research, 14, Article 500.