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Every Monday, in “Climate on the Ballot,” we pass along a topic to help you integrate climate into your newsroom’s campaign reporting. Consider sharing this newsletter with your colleagues on the politics beat. Vea la versión en español de “El clima en la boleta.”
This Week: Dangerous Lies
“It is absolutely the worst I have ever seen,” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters in a call earlier this month. Criswell at that moment wasn’t talking about the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene — which indeed has become one of the deadliest US storms in the modern era — but about the rumors, scams, and conspiracy theories that have surrounded Helene, and now Hurricane Milton.
Misinformation has always accompanied natural disasters. As Jennie King, head of climate research and policy at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and co-founder of Climate Action Against Disinformation, noted in a 2023 CCNow webinar, “mis- and disinformation thrive in moments of crisis, and it doesn’t matter if that is political crisis, economic crisis, or sociocultural crisis. It creates fertile ground for these kinds of narratives, not only to spread and become mainstreamed, but also for them to resonate with ordinary members of the public.”
But the volume of lies around these storms, and around climate change in general, is now louder than ever. Misinformation causes confusion and unnecessary stress, seeds mistrust in public officials and government, and can hamper relief efforts. The deluge of misinformation in response to Hurricane Helene resulted in all of these outcomes, and officials worry that it might also prevent people from getting the help they desperately need. “I worry that [people] won’t register for assistance with us and get access to the critical resources that they are eligible for,” said Criswell.
Separating fact from fiction becomes even harder for officials when one of the candidates for president is spreading it. Donald Trump still denies the existence of climate change, and other elected officials have moved to deny funding for FEMA even as the effects of climate change become deadlier than ever.
CNN fact checker Daniel Dale created a timeline of Trump’s “barrage of lies” after Hurricane Helene. Many outlets followed suit with fact checks of their own, but exposing disinformation and the people spreading it is essential context for readers that bears repeating, both immediately and in follow-up reports. People’s lives are being threatened by false information, and newsrooms need to commit to tackling the problem so readers know what’s true.
Reporting Tips
- Ask yourself, is this worth covering? Sometimes it’s better not to report on misinformation because of the risk of amplifying lies. But if it’s potentially harmful or widespread, it can merit coverage. For example, you might conclude that a person spreading absurd ideas like “the government controls the weather,” is not someone very many people take seriously, but when a member of Congress is saying it, as Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene did on X, it might be worth calling out.
- Don’t include lies or myths in your headline. Research shows that most people on social media share news without reading beyond the headline. A headline that repeats or questions a falsehood without context risks doing more harm than good.
- Fact check, and use the truth sandwich. Start out by calling the misinformation for what it is instead of quoting it. Then use the “truth sandwich” model to debunk the lie. First, state the facts — clearly and simply. Then, warn that the lie is coming. State the myth or lie concisely and explain why it’s misleading. Finish by reinforcing the fact — multiple times if possible.
- Hold bad actors accountable, and explain their motivation. Once you’ve identified who is spreading the lie, include the reasons they may have for doing it, such as political, economic, or reputational gain. Bad actors should always be held accountable for the impact of their misinformation. If possible, call them on it and ask for a statement.
- Encourage your readers/audience to help. News consumers are often on the front lines of misinformation. Encouraging and empowering readers to help neutralize misinformation can only help, perhaps starting in the comments of your publication’s social media feeds. And perhaps most importantly, remember, combating mis/disinformation is an ongoing process. One article or social media post won’t suffice. Establish mechanisms for ongoing community engagement, such as regular updates, public forums, and feedback loops with your audience.
Take Inspiration
This week, we’re highlighting great local reporting from journalists in states impacted by Hurricane Helene.
- Political reporter Isabel Soisson at North Carolina’s Cardinal and Pine writes about the hypocrisy of “politicians now pleading for federal relief” who are “facing fresh scrutiny over their histories of voting against federal disaster aid.”
- Jonah Chester, who covers flooding, sea-level rise, and climate change for the Post and Courier’s Rising Waters Lab, posted this excellent guide for readers on how to spot misinformation that is useful for journalists, as well.
- Greg Bluestein, political reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Zachary Hansen, who covers economic development in Georgia, wrote about Trump’s visit to Valdosta, noting that it “brought sharp concerns from some local officials who worried that Trump’s visit could delay their efforts to repair damage, as well as criticism that he transformed a seemingly nonpartisan issue — disaster relief — into a campaign trail attack.”
- The NPR network of local reporters filed stories on the ground in Helene-affected areas, including Chimney Rock, N.C., the subject of a “persistent untrue claim that FEMA abandoned the village so that the Biden administration can mine lithium there,” talking to mayor Peter O’Leary, who said, “It’s a little disturbing and just upsetting that people want to believe the horrible stuff, but they don’t want to believe the true stuff.”
- The editorial boards of The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer, North Carolina’s two biggest newspapers, published a joint op-ed rebuking Trump for his lies about the hurricane response, writing: “This is not a situation to capitalize on for political gain. But former President Donald Trump has politicized the situation at every turn, spreading falsehoods and conspiracies that fracture the community instead of bringing it together.”
Spotlight Piece
Contributing writer Scott Nover breaks down the “far right’s newest, dumbest trick to spread misinformation on X,” in a post at Slate that deftly illustrates the tactic that has become a hallmark of far-right X posters such as Charlie Kirk and Elon Musk: “1) Post a screenshot of a supposedly genuine text message, 2) express outrage, 3) ask if it’s true without really caring whether it is, and 4) do no further investigation into the matter. It’s a newfangled incarnation of a classic, the chain email. Pass it along or else no one will know the ‘truth.’” Nover notes that “[t]his Twitter outrage format is also being used to spread election misinformation.”
Want to share feedback and stories inspired by this newsletter? Shoot us a note at editors[at]coveringclimatenow[dot]org.