It’s the kind of near-miss collision which in the past may have led some reporters – too many – down a mistaken path of sensationalizing climate change with inadequate understanding of what lay behind their coverage.
Posted inFeature Article
New York Times’ Revkin Launches Dotearth Blog Site
If there’s a “rock star” in the climate science journalism community – and for the sake of outstanding journalism, we might all hope that there were not – it’s unquestionably The New York Times‘ science writer, Andrew C. Revkin, viewed by many as having the world’s best daily newspaper venue for reporting news on climate […]
Posted inAnalysis
Independent Audit Supports Official U.S. Surface Temperature Record
Measuring the temperature of an entire country is no easy undertaking. Numerous factors such as the heat island effect of urban areas and poor quality measuring sites mean that any aggregate temperature calculation must adjust for potential biases. A recent effort by Anthony Watts and a team of dozens of volunteers at SurfaceStations.org succeeded in […]
Posted inCommunicating Climate
NPR’s Year-Long Climate Connection Series: Focus on Climate Change as it Affects Peoples’ Lives
Four years ago, staff editors and producers at National Public Radio began plans for an expansive series of reports showing how climate change has worked its way into every aspect of life around the globe, from the poorest coastal citizen to the largest industrial leader. Then Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and dominated environmental […]
Posted inEnergy, Feature Article, Jobs & Economy
Top News Executives Turn to ‘Solutions’: Energy, Costs, Feasibility, and More (Pt.2 of 2)
Their minds full from an all-morning briefing on climate science from some of the nation’s leading experts, 18 top news executives from some of America’s leading news organizations reconvened after an outdoor lunch at Stanford University’s on-campus Dohrmann Grove, where they sat under the redwoods and an observant red-tailed hawk perched nearby.
Posted inClimate Science
Stop Reading Now: GO SEE THIS YOUTUBE VIDEO. Then, Of Course, Come Back to this Site and Read On
A low-budget, low-tech YouTube video on climate change policy decisionmaking sets an exceptional example of effective communications on a complex subject.
Posted inClimate Science, Oceans
Study Throws Cold Water On Ocean Fertilization Concept
Spiking the oceans with iron or other nutrients to stimulate algal growth and thereby combat global warming just might not be such a hot idea after all.
Posted inFeature Article, Policy & Politics
E-mail Exchanges with Skeptical Reader End up Printed Verbatim Online
When he set about to reply to a reader’s seemingly clear-cut inquiry criticizing his October 3 climate change news story, Louisville, Ky., reporter James Bruggers had no idea his entire e-mail dialog would end up verbatim in an interest group’s newsletter.
Posted inClimate Science
Why a ‘Gulf Stream’ Shut Down and a New European Ice Age are Unlikely
Some in the news media may be overplaying the extent of the risk that Northern Europe might soon plunge into a new Ice Age. They risk going beyond where the best science can now take them. “Britain could be heading for a climate like Alaska,” the BBC reported back in 2003. It painted a stark […]
Posted inFeature Article
On Covering Controversial Science and Public Policy
Journalists, scientists, and academics looking for a respected veteran reporter’s insights on coverage of controversial science issues can turn to, where else, the Web for the perspective of freelance science writer Cristine Russell.
Posted inClimate Science, Feature Article
‘Objectivity’ As a Goal? No: Accuracy and Fairness
I agree with the essence of Professor Phil Meyer’s essay on objectivity in the launch issue of the Yale Forum, except that I’ve always argued that objectivity ultimately is impossible. It goes out the window as soon as we choose which story to write and how we frame it (which used to be called “finding […]
Posted inClimate Science
Lawrence Livermore Scientist Ben Santer Sees Benefits in ‘Proactive’ Approach to News Media
Physical and atmospheric scientist Benjamin D. Santer, of Lawrence Livermore, says he is taking a new “proactive” approach in dealing with news media. Prior to having participated in several face-to-face workshops involving climate scientists and journalists over the past few years, Santer says his standard “mode of operation” had been to: