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A report by the Social Market Foundation (SMF), an independent research group, has accused the UK media of sensationalising science.
It says irresponsible reporting can undermine public confidence in science and government, and on issues such as vaccination may even cost lives. 
The think-tank blames inaccurate reporting for the scare that led some parents to shun the MMR vaccine.
The SMF study was sponsored by mobile phone operators in the UK.
Claudia Wood of the SMF said journalists tended to seek black and white stories and looked for certainties that could not be provided by science.
The pamphlet - Science, Risk and the Media: Do the front pages reflect reality? - was based on a meeting of experts at the three main political party conferences, last year.
The public's inherent mistrust of government and its motives is exacerbated by the media's sensationalist treatment of scientific stories," said Ann Rossiter, director of the SMF.
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