Covering Climate Now is expanding its newsroom training initiatives to strengthen climate coverage on local TV stations across the US. The project, called The Climate Station, builds on Covering Climate Now’s existing work with its 500 media partners around the world, and includes free, customized training to help local stations cover climate stories more effectively.
The training program will span four sessions over eight weeks, followed by six months of ongoing support and feedback, and will be led by Covering Climate Now’s global team, which already works with network-owned television stations across the US. The Climate Station participants will receive a certificate of completion.
The training program’s four sessions, which will be customized for individual stations:
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- Local Climate Stories That Matter highlights the basics of climate science, and the importance of climate change coverage, including solutions. With practical TV examples, the session will demonstrate its appeal to local TV audiences in every market.
- 10 Climate Myths, Debunked identifies common misconceptions about climate science and provides guidance on how to react when confronted with misinformation or disinformation, empowering viewers to make informed decisions and reporters and meteorologists to acquire confidence in their reporting.
- Making the Climate Connection offers journalists innovative strategies for reporting on the relationship between climate change and extreme weather events. We will focus on effective language and techniques for covering these events from every beat, ensuring clarity and impact in your reporting.
- Climate Stories for Every Beat demonstrates how climate change impacts various aspects of daily life, such as weather, health, jobs, and politics. By analyzing TV news examples, participants will pick up useful tips for incorporating these angles into their own stories, strengthening their coverage of climate-related issues.
While local television stations across the country are welcome to participate, space is limited. More information can be found at the application link below.
For inquiries, please contact Elena González at at elena[at]coveringclimatenow[dot]org.