Mediating Uncertainty

Abstract

The commercialization of nanotechnologies and the rapid development of hyperbole around their commercialization can provide a fertile field for research into how the potentials and expectations of an emerging technology are communicated to investors. As the commercialization of nanotechnologies intensifies, this area will grow in significance. This article explores how the financial potentials of nanotechnologies and the promise of high returns for investors are constructed by marketing professionals and mediated through financial media. Attention is focused on how the immense uncertainties that surround nanotech as a commercialized field are managed by scientists, marketers, public relations professionals, and journalists and on the communication strategies used to take advantage of the ambiguities of nanotech in order to translate the technologies into a profitable industry.