Columbia University

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Columbia Universitysprogram in Earth
Environmental Science Journalism

• Kim Kastens
• (kastens_at_ldeo.columbia.edu)
• Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
• of Columbia University
• Presentation to
• SommerUSAademie 2005 Wissenschaftsjournalismus
• 6 September 2005

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Columbia Universitysprogram in Earth
Environmental Science Journalism

1. Dual masters degree program for Columbia students
2. Environmental journalists of color project, in
   collaboration with Society of Environmental
   Journalists

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Goal
• . to train journalists who have both the
  scientific background and the communications
  skills to inform the public about discoveries,
  processes, insights, and controversies about the
  Earth and environment, in a manner that is
  simultaneously interesting and accurate.
• (Clue articulate what you are trying to
  accomplish.)

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Co-sponsored by
• Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
• The Department of Earth Environmental Sciences
• The Columbia Graduate School of Journalism
• (Clue work with excellent partners.)

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Co-directed by
• Kim Kastens (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory)
• Marguerite Holloway (Graduate School of
  Journalism)
• (Clue tap multiple expertises)

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Prerequisites undergraduate background in
  science and demonstrated writing ability
• Course of study
• 2 semesters of coursework in Earth
  environmental science anchored by Case Studies
  in EESJ
• science masters research project
• 2 semesters of coursework and practical training
  in journalism
• journalism masters project
• Result
•  MA in Earth Environmental Sciences
• plus MS in Journalism
• (Clue Be tough. Set high standards)

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• What we look for in applicants
• Writing ability, via J-school writing test.
• Basic science prerequisites, one college year
  with grade of B or better in 4 out of 5 of
• Geosciences, Biological Sciences
• Math, Physics, Chemistry
• Commitment to communicating across interface
  between science and society.
• worked at nature center, national park, science
  teacher
• undergraduate double major science and
  language
• student journalism
• Avoid science wannabes
• Interesting interview they ask us questions

(Clue Put a lot of energy into admissions
process. )
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Case Studies in Earth Environmental Science
  Journalism
• read articles written for a technical audience
  about an issue, discovery or controversy
• read articles written for a popular audience on
  the same topic
• interview a scientist who worked on the topic
• from this primary material, construct
  understanding of journalistic strategies and
  devices
• 2004-2005 Sumatran tsunami, Teaching
  Creationism in public schools, Coral bleaching,
  Arsenic in groundwater of Bangladesh, Marine
  mammals sonars, California energy crisis, etc.

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• What is a science research project doing in a
  journalism education program, anyway?

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Some of the learning objectives for the EESJ
  science research project
• Students will experience the process of finding
  a research question which is (a) unanswered, but
  (b) answerable.
• Students will master skills or techniques of a
  subdiscipline of earth or environmental science,
  thus gaining an appreciation of research as a
  craft.
•  Students will generate original data about the
  Earth or Environment, thus gaining some
  understanding of the ambiguities and
  complexities inherent in real data.
• Students will generate logically-defensible
  interpretations from their data, and thus
  strengthen their ability to build a chain of
  logic from observation to interpretation, and
  from cause to effect.
• Students will experience the state of mind
  that comes with total immersion in research, and
  thus come to recognize science as a creative
  endeavor.
• Students will become a member of an active
  research group, and will feel the human dynamics
  of such a group.
• Students will gain confidence in their ability
  to hold their own in the community of scientists.

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Columbia Graduate School of Journalism component
• Environmental Reporting
• Advanced Reporting Writing (RWI)
• Skills of the Journalist
• Masters' Project
• Critical issues in journalism
• Journalism, the law and society
• Science Reporting and Writing
• Media Workshop
• Master's Project
• Journalism Elective

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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• Where do the graduates work?
• Science-oriented publications
• Scientific American, Geotimes, Discover
• Environment-oriented publications
• On Earth, Audubon
• Mainstream Media
• Houston Chronicle, New York Times, Wall Street
  Journal, Albuquerque Journal, Albany
  Times-Union
• freelance
• out of journalism
• environmental consulting

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(No Transcript)
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program
Exemplary work In Harms Way by Dina
Cappiello, 1999 EESJ graduate, in Houston
Chronicle, 2005
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program
Environmental Reporting
Science
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program
UC Santa Cruz
mid-career (MBL, Metcalfe)
PhD or MD
journalism
Columbia EESJ
work
science Undergraduate
non-science
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Columbia EESJ Masters Program

• What I have learned about the overlapping values
  of scientists and journalists
• curiosity
• skepticism
• ability to self-educate without a teacher
• comfortable out of mainstream of society
• search for truth

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EESJ GeoDiversity Project

• Goals
• To increase the quality, accuracy and
  visibility of environmental journalism in media
  reaching people of color.
• To increase knowledge of, and interest in, the
  Earth and environment among minorities
  underrepresented in the Geoscience workforce.
• ______
• Funded by National Science Foundation,
  Opportunities for the Enhancement of Diversity in
  the Geosciences program (2001-2005)

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EESJ GeoDiversity Project
Hurricane Katrina victims were disproportionately
African-American.
because African-Americans in New Orleans are
more likely to live in poverty, and lack cars
because African-Americans were less well-informed
about natural hazards and environmental risks???
Hurricane Katrina victims, NY Times website
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EESJ GeoDiversity Project
Did the warnings in the press miss them? If so,
what could journalists, journalism organizations,
or media organizations do?
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EESJ GeoDiversity Project

• Collaboration between Columbia/EESJ and
• Society of Environmental Journalists
• National Association of Black Journalists
• Native American Journalists Association
• National Hispanic Journalists Association

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EESJ GeoDiversity Project

• Fellowships for minority journalists to attend
  SEJ meetings
• Co-organized sessions and field trips on
  environmental topics at NABJ, NAJA, and NAHJ
  meetings
• Environmental category in journalism awards
  programs of minority journalism organizations

Brenda Box of WTOP-AM radio, Washington DC, ran a
conference mini-tour on the Bayou Savage National
Wildlife Refuge at the 2003 SEJ New Orleans
conference.
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EESJ GeoDiversity Project
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EESJ GeoDiversity Project

• But maybe not as knowledgeable
• In a survey of 808 undergraduates enrolled in an
  introductory environmental literacy course,
  Battles (2003) found
• 38 of African-American/Blacks vs
• 51 of Caucasians/Whites
• agreed with the statement in general, I had a
  good understanding of environmental issues before
  I took this course,

African-Americans are as concerned about
environmental issues as European-Americans
(Mohai, 2003).
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EESJ GeoDiversity Project

• SEJ Minority Fellows tell us
• Editors consider the environment a suburban or
  white beat and dont tend to assign journalists
  of color to cover environmental stories.
• Editors think minority readers/viewers arent
  interested in environmental topics.
• They work on tight deadlines without the time
  for investigations that environmental stories
  require.
• They write for publications with small staffs,
  environment beat is rare, science beat unknown.
• Miamis Hispanic communitylive in an
  information desert with respect to the
  environmental problems that affect their
  neighborhoods (Swafford, 1996).

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For further information

• Earth Environmental Science Journalism program
• http//www.ldeo.columbia.edu/eesj/
• Diversity in Environmental Journalism program
• http//www.ldeo.columbia.edu/edu/eesj/sejweb/