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How Can Journalism Get Better at Covering Climate Change?
Article

How Can Journalism Get Better at Covering Climate Change?

Being a bummer might help.

Neiman Lab, 2022


Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Analytical
  • Background
  • Concrete Examples

Recommendation

Journalism is good at tracking sensational, fast-breaking news such as local homicides and sports events, but sometimes performs not quite as well in covering slow-developing, global stories such as climate change. This is not helpful to the public, especially because fossil fuel interests fervently underwrite messages designed to confuse the issue. Though fewer reporters now engage in the false equivalency of portraying climate scientists and climate deniers as equally qualified and credible, covering climate change remains challenging. In this article for the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard, Joshua Benton sets the record straight about what the public seeks in climate change coverage.

Summary

Climate journalists must demonstrate ethics and fact-checking rigor.

News consumers think climate change is important, but feel that quality standards for climate change reporting are lower than those for other top-line news subjects, and they trust it less. Readers want to hear from experts who describe their best solutions to climate change. 

Generally, public interest in climate change reporting tends to divide along familiar demographic lines, such as political affinity and age. However, research in Denmark found that people’s trust in the news is pretty high regardless of their political affiliation, with 92% of left-leaning readers and 83% of right-leaning visitors expressing trust. The gap widens with climate reporting. Still, 69% of right-leaning readers trust reporting about the climate “to some extent.”

While readers aren’t interested in the climate change opinions of their fellow citizens, analysis reveals their great interest in reporters...

About the Author

Joshua Benton founded and directs Harvard’s Nieman Journalism Lab.


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