I think many times the researchers authoring the original articles merit as much scrutiny as the journalists who report on them. In the US at least there are ma

I think many times the researchers authoring the original articles merit as much scrutiny as the journalists who report on them. In the US at least there are many incentives to publish eye grabbing results, often at the cost of scientific rigor. Some of the most successful research groups I know spend a significant amount of time essentially maintaining a brand and consistent message. The brand and reputation of the group is incredibly important for obtaining funding. You can bet if a study finds something off message or fails to reject the null hypothesis it will be set aside and not reported. So while journalists have an incentive to report the most novel and eye-catching results, that motivation has definitely trickled down to the level of guiding research inquiries and influencing data analyses.