Abstract
Uncertainty of knowledge is an ethical challenge for science communicators in all fields, as it is a fundamental part of science. The communicator must balance the need to keep any information digestible, relevant and enjoyable with the need to be accurate, honest and transparent. This balance becomes particularly difficult to achieve when the communication is through story, which is governed by its own set of rules, sometimes bringing the priorities of science and story into conflict. This thesis explores these ethical challenges by examining the highly ambiguous topic of ambergris using a contemporary ethical framework designed for science communication. The framework was adapted from one created by Keohane, Lane and Oppenheimer (2014), in which the criteria were designed for a science policy setting. This thesis develops a slightly altered framework more suitable for a general public audience where a story is the vehicle for the science communication. The ambiguous science of ambergris is evaluated in general, and then in the context of the short film Gris, submitted as the creative component of this thesis. The adapted framework proved useful for both the decision-making process during the making of the film, and for its retrospective evaluation. It is suggested that although the Keohane et al. (2014) framework was designed for the specific purpose of science communication in a policy setting, only one of the five criteria - ‘audience relevance’, required adaptation for use in a storytelling context. The framework could potentially be useful for a range of science communication applications outside either story or policy applications.