SciLine

What SciLine does

SciLine is an editorially independent, nonpartisan nonprofit service founded in 2017 and based at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Washington, D.C. Its core function is to reduce friction between journalists and scientific experts by operating as a human-mediated intermediary: matching reporters to vetted scientists on deadline, hosting live on-the-record media briefings, producing broadcast-quality expert interviews, and publishing expert-vetted explainers and rapid-response quotes. The organization also runs crash courses for journalists, media training for scientists, and a tip line that lets scientists surface story ideas to the press.

The underlying "platform" is not a software product but a curated expert registry combined with editorial staff who vet, match, and moderate interactions. There are no APIs, SDKs, integrations, or proprietary technology components disclosed; distribution is via the sciline.org website, an email newsletter, and organic social channels (Twitter/X, Facebook, LinkedIn). Six topic verticals (Environment & Energy, Health & Medicine, Life Sciences, Physical & Mathematical Sciences, Social Sciences, Technology) organize the content library.

SciLine's business model is fully philanthropic: all services are provided free of charge to both journalists and scientists, and operations are funded by charitable foundations through AAAS. There is no commercial revenue stream, no pricing tiers, and no disclosed operating budget. The organization is small (1-10 employees) with no subsidiaries, no venture or equity funding, and no plans disclosed for IPO or structural change. Customer concentration on the user side is structurally low given the long-tail individual user base, while the undisclosed philanthropic donor base represents the principal sustainability variable.

Name

SciLine

Legal name

SciLine

Website

https://sciline.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SciLine is a nonprofit service based at AAAS that connects journalists with vetted scientific experts via free expert matching, media briefings, broadcast interviews, and reporting resources, funded entirely by philanthropic grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Science Journalism Services

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Communications Services, Nec (4899)

akta.pro primary industry

STEM & Science Education Channels (MPABAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Educational/Science/History Cable Networks (MPABAFAJ), Life Sciences (Biology, Ecology, Agriculture) Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAC)

Keywords

• Science journalism support
• Expert source matching
• Scientific media briefings
• Journalist training resources
• Nonprofit science communications

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Funding: SciLine is fully funded by philanthropies (charitable foundations). All services for journalists and scientists are provided free of charge. No commercial revenue generation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SciLine is a free, editorially independent nonprofit service that connects journalists with vetted scientific experts and evidence-based reporting resources. Its core offerings include expert matching on deadline, live media briefings on science topics, broadcast-quality video interview opportunities, expert-vetted science explainers, media training for scientists, and crash courses for journalists — all funded by philanthropies and hosted at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Product overview

SciLine offers a platform of free services connecting journalists with scientific experts. The core offerings include Expert Matching (connecting reporters to expert sources), Media Briefings (live expert webcasts on science topics), Experts on Camera (broadcast-quality video interviews), Reporting Resources (expert-vetted explainers and quotes), Media Training (for scientists), Crash Courses (for journalists), and a Tip Line for scientists to suggest story ideas. All services are editorially independent, nonpartisan, and philanthropically funded through AAAS.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Expert Matching Connects journalists to deeply knowledgeable, articulate expert-sources on deadline or as needed for their reporting. Available to journalists free of charge.
• Media Briefings Live, on-the-record, web-based briefings by leading experts on science topics in the news, with video and transcripts free for use in stories. Free for journalists.
• Experts on Camera Broadcast-quality one-on-one video interview opportunities with scientists, primarily for broadcast journalists. Free for participating scientists and journalists.
• Reporting Resources Expert-vetted science explainers and rapid-response quotes providing trustworthy facts and context for news stories. Free for journalists.
• Media Training Skills-building sessions designed to help scientists integrate into media engagement and communicate effectively with reporters. Free for scientists.

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSciLine is editorially independent but based at AAAS, the world's largest multidisciplinary scientific society. AAAS provides organizational infrastructure and institutional credibility. SciLine operates with its own editorial independence while leveraging AAAS's broad scientific network.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Science Media Centre (UK): UK-based nonprofit that operates the same core model as SciLine—connecting journalists with scientific experts on deadline, hosting press briefings, and providing vetted scientific context for news stories. Closest functional equivalent in a different geography.
• Newswise: Service that connects journalists with experts and distributes science news releases. Directly comparable to SciLine's Expert Matching and Reporting Resources offerings.
• EurekAlert!: AAAS-operated news release distribution service for science, medicine, and technology research. Direct organizational sibling of SciLine (also hosted at AAAS) and serves a related set of science-journalism needs.
• Science Media Centre of Australia: Australian counterpart operating the same journalist-expert matching and media briefing model as SciLine, hosted within the Australian Academy of Science. Highly comparable in mission, structure, and service mix.
• AlphaGalileo: European research-news service distributing expert research stories to journalists worldwide. Comparable in connecting academic experts to media, though operating commercially rather than as a free nonprofit service.
• The Conversation: Nonprofit media outlet that publishes articles written by academics and aimed at general news audiences. Closely parallels SciLine's mission of getting expert scientific voices into journalism, though delivered via written op-eds rather than direct expert-journalist matching.

Broad incumbents

• STAT News: Boston Globe Media-owned health and science journalism outlet that employs science journalists directly. Adjacent to SciLine's space as a larger, commercially funded science-media operation that addresses related journalist demand.

Others

• PLOS (Public Library of Science): Open-access scientific publisher with an adjacent science-communication mission (PLOS Blogs, SciCommPLOS). Related ecosystem participant that supports the broader goal of public access to scientific evidence but does not directly compete with SciLine's matching service.

Emerging players

• Knowable Magazine: Science communication publication from Annual Reviews that produces accessible expert-vetted explainers—comparable to SciLine's Reporting Resources service, though published on a magazine cadence rather than on-demand for journalists.
• Research Square: Preprint and researcher-media platform that helps scientists share findings with journalists and the public. Overlaps with SciLine's mission of amplifying scientific expertise in news coverage.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RealSciLine
• Facebookfacebook.com/RealSciLine
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sciline

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SciLine