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IGA-451M: CONTROVERSIES IN CLIMATE, ENERGY & THE MEDIA: Improving Public Communication

Harvard Kennedy School Spring 2018, Module 3 (Jan 23 - Mar 8) Tuesday/Thursday 11:45am - 1:00pm Belfer L1 Weil Town Hall

Faculty: Professor Cristine Russell Email: Cristine_Russell@hks.harvard.edu Office Hours: Schedule with Professor Office: Brattle Street Complex 5th floor, Room 559

Course Assistant: Caitlin Trethewy Email: caitlin_trethewy@hks18.harvard.edu Office Hours: Posted on course website Faculty Assistant: Stacy Hannell Email: Stacy_Hannell@hks.harvard.edu Office: Littauer 209

Course Description: No matter who you are, what you do, or where you live, understanding the impact of “the media” on the policies, politics, and public understanding of crucial and contentious global issues like climate change has never been more important. Both press freedom—and the planet—are threatened in myriad countries, from dictatorships to democracies. In his first year in office, American President Donald Trump launched an all-out attack, via Twitter, on what he calls the "fake news" media, as well as scientific evidence of human-caused climate change. Supported by the Republican-led Congress, the Trump administration also moved quickly to curtail many of the national and international climate, energy and environmental policies of the Obama administration. In the rapidly changing media environment, virtually all professionals, by choice or necessity, need to become participants in the public sphere. This course is intended to help students navigate the conventional and social media landscape, providing a better understanding of how media coverage shapes the public conversation and how this in turn shapes the media. The class will be participatory and discussion-intensive, providing practical strategies and skills that apply to any career path. Guest journalists and outside experts will add real-world perspectives. Climate change and energy are universal stories impacting the public and private sectors as well as the daily life of people around the world. They impact the economy, national security, public health, agriculture, cities and rural areas, as well as travel, tourism, and sports—even the Olympics. Course topics include: the disconnect between political action and the immense threats posed by climate change; extreme weather and its global impact; the divisive anti-science and climate denial movements; global energy debates about fossil fuels (including the United States’ natural gas and oil revolution and the Trump Administration’s embrace of coal); renewable energy; nuclear power; and the climate and energy clash between developed and developing countries. This novel elective, first taught in 2012, has been completely updated for 2018 to reflect the latest coverage of energy and environment issues in mainstream news media, as well as

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commentary in blogs and social media. We will also take a multimedia approach to study the power of imagery as well as words, including photographs (think polar bear), graphics, video, television, and political cartoons. The final role-play exercise will focus on the Arctic, which has been called “ground zero” in the fight against climate change. What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic: it impacts the entire world. We will analyze media coverage of the geopolitical implications of the melting Arctic, including its relevance to global climate change, rising sea levels, environmental security, shipping, energy and mineral resources, and indigenous peoples. The in-class exercise has proven a popular—and fun—way to understand complicated issues, with students playing the roles of important figures in the public and private sectors. You could be a President, a shipping magnate, or an environmental activist. The ultimate question posed by the course is whether it is possible to have an informed public debate today about the key climate, energy and environment issues of our time, from their scientific and technical underpinnings to possible policy options and solutions. The answer depends in part on how and where citizens get their information among the array of choices in the media marketplace. We will explore several communication roadblocks and strategies for overcoming them, including: • The slow process of developing scientific “truth” and knowledge-based journalism in an era

of instant 24/7 news, science denialism, and unfiltered online information. • A political world increasingly characterized by polarization, gridlock, and competing

visions of the role of government. “Media spin” and “fake news” are key weapons in these policy and political wars.

• A decline of mainstream news outlets, which are accustomed to separating fact-based reporting and opinion, and the rise of alternative media outlets (cable television; talk radio; blogging and social media) that are highly opinionated, increasingly partisan, and often lacking in editorial supervision, fact-checking, and traditional journalism norms.

• A citizenry with limited scientific education that is bombarded by a variety of different media and a plethora of conflicting, confusing and often contradictory messages. A range of emotional, ideological, and political reactions colors perception of risks and benefits that go beyond the “facts.”

• Competition from day-to-day news, from the serious to the silly, which may easily overshadow energy and environment topics. Crime, celebrities, sports, and stunts are far easier to sell.

General Topics: • The changing media landscape in the US and globally. • The explosive growth of the internet and social media, including the Twitterverse, Facebook

and the blogosphere. • Understanding the players in science/research and policy; business; non-profit think tanks;

advocacy groups; government; media; and the public. • How the game is played: practical strategies for dealing with the media. • Public opinion on climate change, energy, and environment issues.

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• Political leadership/non-leadership in local, national and international climate, energy, and environment efforts.

• The role of controversy, uncertainty, “false balance,” and visual symbols in influencing public opinion.

Guest Speakers: • A major public event, and class discussion, with internationally acclaimed Penn State

climate scientist Michael Mann and Washington Post Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist Tom Toles. They co-authored “The Madhouse Effect: How Climate Change Denial is Threatening Our Planet, Destroying Our Politics, and Driving Us Crazy.”

• Other leading energy/environment journalists and other experts will join class conversations, in person or by Skype.

No Prerequisites: This course is open to graduate students from any Harvard school or department, to affiliate schools and to qualified undergraduates with the permission of the instructor. The diversity of international backgrounds enriches the course. Students for whom English is a second language are encouraged to enroll; special accommodations for written work will be made. Cross registration by students from other universities is encouraged. Check with the HKS Registrar and the instructor for procedures. Auditors are welcome if space is available and should contact the instructor for permission. Class participation: In-Class Discussion – Participation in class discussions is expected. Throughout the class, students will be asked to discuss readings and debate media strategies and the positions of various media actors. The class will culminate in a fun role-play exercise involving all students that brings the media and communication lessons to life. Class Blog – Our private class blog will encourage out-of-class dialogue and further analysis of class readings, current events, and other relevant information/media, etc. Since this is a module, the blog provides an added opportunity for students to get to know one another. Each student will be given access to the blog and instructions on how to use it. The blog will count toward class participation (and not be judged on writing style). Class members are expected to be regular blog participants, posting short entries and comments on other posts. The instructor, teaching assistant, and students will pose questions to the group. Requirements and suggestions for blog posts and comments will be provided on the Course Page. Blog posts might include a short commentary on one class reading or sharing other media articles on course topics that you find interesting. As needed, we will offer basic tutorials on how to blog and tweet to bring all members of the class up to speed on social media. Students are expected to follow the daily news, including a newspaper or mainstream media online publication in the U.S. or abroad. A list of relevant aggregators and blogs will also be provided on the class blog (e.g. “The Daily Climate”).

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Assignments: Assignment one: Extreme weather events and climate change. Write a short critical review of the media coverage of an extreme weather event of your choosing in the past five years (such as extreme heat, droughts, wildfires, flooding, hurricanes/typhoons, etc.), focusing on the language used and people quoted. Explain how journalists communicated to the public about the role of climate change in this extreme weather event: Where did they fall short in their coverage? What did they do well? What could they have done better? Was the reporting accurate? What sources did they use? Do you trust those sources? Did they overplay the role of climate change or understate it? Cite at least two news articles in your piece. 750-1,000 words, Due Wed. 2/7, 5pm Assignment two: Nuclear or renewable energy in the clean energy transition. In carrying out the Paris climate agreement, how will renewable and nuclear energies lead toward a low-carbon future? Write a short news article, op-ed, or blog post on the role of nuclear power, or a renewable energy source of your choice in driving a country’s transition to “cleaner” or “greener” energy. Localize the technology in a country (or region of a country) in which there is debate or controversy; this can be a region where an installation currently exists, a region where new operations have been proposed, or a region with aggressive carbon emissions targets. You should take a point of view and argue your case in an op-ed or blog format. You must use (and cite) three news or technical articles as background for your piece. The best papers present both technical and human-interest background and discuss technical information in a clear and accurate manner. 750-1,000 words, Due Fri. 2/24, 5pm Assignment three. “The Big Melt: The Future of the Arctic” role-play exercise. This assignment includes an in-class exercise (March 7) and an analytical paper (due March 10). In the class exercise, each student will play the role of a character speaking at the Arctic Circle conference and work in small assigned teams: government policy makers/politicians (i.e. US, Russia); media (journalist; newspaper editor; bloggers/commentators); researchers/experts; company/trade association officials; environmental activists; etc. A guest journalist will “live” blog the presentations. Following the exercise, students must submit a paper analyzing the broader role played by the media in its coverage of climate change and the Arctic and your “character,” lessons learned in the role-play, and the influence of the various players in the game. In this paper, you should apply lessons learned from the in-class exercise to the broader media landscape and policy debate. 1,000-1,500 words, Due Fri. 3/9, 5pm Extensions require advance permission from the instructor. Otherwise, late assignments will be penalized one grade level per 24-hours late. ***Assignments are intended to provide an opportunity for students to hone their analytical, research, and writing skills. Please talk to Prof. Russell or Caitlin if you would like to adapt assignments to make them more meaningful for your academic/professional interests. Grading: Class participation: In-class discussion 10%

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Class participation: Class blog posts/comments 15%

Assignment one: Extreme weather paper 20%

Assignment two: Nuclear or renewable energy article/op-ed/blog

20%

Assignment three: The Melting Arctic in-class exercise & analytical paper

35%

Expectations: The Kennedy School is a professional school. As such, students are expected to: Attend all classes (unless advance permission to miss); Be on time; Do the expected reading; Participate actively in class discussions and on class blog; Be respectful of each other and of the instructor; Submit assignments on time and prepare professional work. • Class discussions are a large part of the learning in this class. Laptop or Smartphone use is

strongly discouraged during class. Academic Integrity: You are expected to abide by University policies on academic honesty and integrity. Violations of these policies will not be tolerated. A paper submitted by you and that bears your name is presumed to be your own original work that has not previously been submitted for credit in another course. In your assignments, you may use words or ideas written by other individuals in publications, web sites, or other sources, but only with proper attribution. Students must be familiar with and must observe Kennedy School and Harvard University rules regarding the citation of sources. See HKS student handbook for details. Instructor: Cristine Russell, Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy, is an award-winning freelance journalist who has written about science, environment and public health for more than three decades. She is a Senior Fellow in the Environment and Natural Resources Program at HKS’ Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and an Advisory Board member and former Fellow at HKS’ Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics & Public Policy. Russell, a former national science reporter for The Washington Post, is a contributor to news media outlets, such as Scientific American, Columbia Journalism Review and The Atlantic. Russell co-chaired the Organizing Committee of the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017 in San Francisco and has organized sessions for previous conferences in Korea, Finland, Qatar, and the UK. She is immediate past-president of the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing and a former president of the National Association of Science Writers. Russell served on the boards of the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; an honorary member of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society; and a Mills College graduate with a degree in biology.

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Outline of Classes and Discussion Questions – 2018 Class Date Topic/Questions Assignment

1/18 Shopping Sessions 11:45 am -1:00 pm: Introduction and Overview of Course and Requirements

SECTION I: Overview of the Changing Global Media Landscape

● How do changes in the news media—decline in mainstream news, rapid rise of social media—influence public understanding of complex policy issues?

● How does the rise of “fake news,” disinformation & misinformation affect the public and its trust in media?

● How does media coverage of environment, energy and climate topics compare to other domestic & foreign policy issues?

● How does the growth in mobile technology affect news consumption? ● How big is the media generation gap between millennials and their elders? ● Why do stories favor politics over policy and controversy over consensus? ● How do decision makers and advocacy groups use the media to ‘spin’ the public

conversation about energy and environment issues? 1 1/23 How Rapid Changes in Global Media Impact Public Understanding

of Policy, Politics & Controversial Energy/Environment Issues

SECTION II: Global Trends in Media & Public Opinion on Climate Change

● How has the news media covered climate change science, policy & politics? ● Why has the scientific and policy case for action to reduce the global threat of

climate change become increasingly politicized in recent years? ● What fuels climate change denialism in countries like the US and Australia? ● Why do energy and environment issues collide in the public discourse? ● How do blogs and special interests influence the public debate? ● What are the trends in US & international public opinion on climate change? ● How will other countries—from France to China—filled the US leadership gap?

2 1/25 Overview of Climate Change Coverage, the Public Opinion Divide, the Politics of Denial & the Trump Administration

3 1/30 The Global Media, Policies & Politics of Climate Change (US, China, Australia & other countries)

4 2/1 Covering Catastrophe: Extreme Weather—from Hurricanes to Wildfires—Brings Urgency to Climate Change

SECTION III: Energy, New Technology and Risk Reporting

● How have new sources of natural gas and oil changed the global energy, economic and geopolitical discussion?

● How has the Trump’s Administration embrace of fossil fuels changed the discourse? What has been the role of the media?

● How do images, films, and celebrity engagement move people to care about climate, energy & the environment? Which images get significant attention (like polar bears in the Arctic)?

● Winners and losers: The see-saw coverage of energy ●

5 2/6 The Fossil Fuel Industry Under Fire: Media Coverage of Coal, Oil, and Gas Controversies

Assignment 1 Due Wed. 2/7, 5pm

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SECTION IV: It’s not easy being green: The seesaw coverage of renewable and clean energy

● David and Goliath: How are renewable energies pitted against fossil fuels? ● By the numbers: How well do journalists understand the economics and scale of

renewable and conventional energy sources? ● How has coverage of solar and wind power in the US turned renewable energy into

a political football? What about global coverage? ● What are the challenges of communicating uncertain, complex, technical

information during a global environmental or nuclear disaster? ● How does faith in new technologies affect coverage of energy?

6 2/8 The Seesaw Coverage of Renewable Energy and its Global Future 7 2/13 Advance Discussion of Public Lecture on Climate Change 2/14 HKS Public Event “The Madhouse Effect: How Climate Change

Denial is Threatening our Planet & Destroying Our Politics” Climate scientist Michael Mann & Washington Post political cartoonist Tom Toles combine science and satire.

Required to Attend or watch video of event

8 2/15 The Seesaw Coverage of Nuclear Energy in the U.S. & Worldwide GUEST: Prof. Matthew Bunn, Harvard Kennedy School

9 2/20 Techno-Optimism or Pessimism: Can Technology Save the Day? SECTION V: Global Gridlock: It’s not my problem

● How does media coverage of environment and energy vary around the world? ● What are the important “neglected” global stories that deserve more coverage? ● Who is covering the “other” related issues in economic/food insecurity, climate

migration and national security? ● How do we overcome the media divide between developed & developing

countries? 10 2/22 Out of Sight: How News Media Cover (or Don’t Cover) Larger

Energy/Environment Issues in the Developing World GUESTS: GUESTS: International environment writers Jane Qiu & Meera Subramanian (current/former MIT Knight Science Journalism fellows)

Assignment 2 Due Fri. 2/23 at 5pm

SECTION VI: Role Play Exercise “The Big Melt: The Future of the Arctic”

● Why is the Arctic debate so polarizing? ● Which stakeholders are effective in communication with the press and the public

on energy, the environment and climate? ● What is the role of public affairs, communication and political strategists in the

public and private sector? ● How would you design effective media strategies from a corporate or government

perspective? 11 2/27 The Melting Arctic: Policies, Politics & the Media. GUEST: Halla

Hrund Logadottir, co-founder of HKS Arctic Initiative & former director, Iceland School of Energy, Reykjavik University

12 3/1 Arctic class discussion and preparation for Class Role-Play 13 3/6 In Character: Class Role-Play Exercise on the Melting Arctic

SECTION VII: Conclusion

Optional Class Lunch TBD

14 3/8 Lessons Learned: Applying Media/Communication Knowledge & Skills to your own Professional Life

Assignment 3 Due Fri. 3/9, 5pm

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2018 COURSE READINGS

Course readings include a diverse range of media stories in the US and abroad; analysis of energy and environmental issues; and communications research and commentary. Some classes include multiple news articles from different media outlets about the same energy/environmental story. You should read these articles not only for content but also for better understanding of the different ways that stories can be communicated. The readings are divided into PRIORITY and OPTIONAL, as well as MULTIMEDIA. We will also Update with changing events as the class moves along. While the reading list appears long, most media articles are relatively short and quick to read; past students have found it quite manageable. Students will receive additional guidance on reading priorities for each class. Section I: Overview of the Changing Global Media Landscape

Class 1. January 23. How Rapid Changes in Global Media Impact Controversial Energy & Environment Issues PRIORITY Changing Face of The Media: Newman, N. “Digital News Report: Overview & Key Findings of 2017 Report” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and University of Oxford. 2017. International overview. Dias, Nic. “7 studies about mis- & disinformation from 2017.” First Draft News. Dec. 30, 2017. Silverman, C. “I helped popularize the term ‘fake news’ and now I cringe every time I hear it.” BuzzFeed News, Dec. 31, 2017. Holan, A.D. “The media's definition of fake news vs. Donald Trump's.” Politifact. Oct. 18, 2017. Keily, E. and Robertson, L. “How to Spot Fake News.” FactCheck.org. Nov. 18, 2016. (Video included) Also see this Infographic. Sullivan, M. “Polls show Americans distrust the media. But talk to them, and it’s a very different story.” Washington Post, Dec. 28, 2017. Newman, N. and Fletcher, R. “Bias, Bullshit and Lies: Audience Perspective on Low Trust in the Media.” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism & University of Oxford, Dec. 7, 2017. International: 9 countries. Fahri, P. “Dear readers: Please stop calling us ‘the media.’ There is no such thing.” Washington Post, Nov. 10, 2015.

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Simon, J. “Journalism’s delivery system, not the coverage itself, is broken.” Columbia Journalism Review, Nov. 11, 2016. Changing Media and Environment, Energy & Climate Resnick, B. “Trump thinks climate change isn't real because it's cold out. This map proves him wrong.” Vox. Dec. 29, 2017. Pooley, Eric. “Climate change denial is the original fake news.” Time Magazine, Feb. 14, 2017. Dufoe, A. “The 10 Most Important U.S. Climate Stories in 2017.” Climate Central. Dec. 27, 2017. Yoder, K. “Ecoanxiety: From hotumn to meatmares: The words that defined our planet this year.” Grist. Dec. 22, 2017. Fletcher, R. “The Public and News About the Environment.” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Jun. 2016. Surveys in 26 countries. Mooney, C. “Why you shouldn’t only get your climate change news from the mainstream media.” Washington Post. Apr. 21, 2015. OPTIONAL Carey, B. “‘Fake News’: Wide Reach but Little Impact, Study Suggests.” New York Times, Jan. 2, 2018. Nielsen, R. & Graves, L. “’News You Don’t Believe’: Audience Perspectives on ‘Fake News’.” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism & University of Oxford, Oct. 24, 2017. US, UK, Spain & Finland. (Overview & Conclusion) Gottfried, G. and Shearer, E. “Americans’ Online News Use is Closing in on TV News Use.” Pew Research Center, Sept. 7, 2017. Collins, Kimberly. “How Are Scientists Using Social Media in the Workplace?” PLoS One, Oct. 12, 2016. Mitchell, A., Funk, C., and Gottfried, J. "Most Americans express curiosity in science news, but a minority are active science news consumers." Pew Research Center Journalism & Media, Sept. 20, 2017. How Diverse Media Outlets Report on the Same Climate News Story (Skim)

• Millar, R., Fuglestvedt, J., Friedlingstein, P., Rogelj, J., Grubb, M., Matthews, H., Skeie, R., Forster, P., Frame, D. and Allen, M. “Emission Budgets And Pathways Consistent With Limiting Warming to 1.5oC.” Nature Geoscience. Sept. 18, 2017. Scientific journal.

• Carrington, D. “Ambitious 1.5C Paris climate target is still possible, new analysis

shows.” The Guardian. Sep. 18, 2017. Pro-climate action global newspaper.

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• Delingpole, J. “Delingpole: Climate Alarmists Finally Admit ‘We Were Wrong About

Global Warming’.” Breitbart. Sept. 19, 2017. Alt-right/conservative/climate denialist online news outlet.

• Allen, M. and Millar, R. “When Media Sceptics Misrepresent Our Climate Research We

Must Speak Out.” The Guardian. Sep. 21, 2017. Scientists.

• Webster, B. “We were wrong — worst effects of climate change can be avoided, say experts.” The Times. Sep. 19, 2017.

• Mooney, C. “New climate calculations could buy the Earth some time — if they’re

right.” The Washington Post. Sep. 19, 2017. MULTIMEDIA Burin, O. “The New Information Environment.” YouTube. June 15, 2016. Pew Research Center’s Journalism Project. “Where News Audiences Fit on the Political Spectrum.” Pew Research Center’s Journalism Project, Oct. 21, 2014. Novel ways to reach new audiences: Comedy & Climate Change Nuccitelli, D. “John Oliver's viral video: the best climate debate you'll ever see.” The Guardian. May 23, 2014. Stewart, J. “The Global Warming Hoax.” & “War on Carbon.” The Daily Show. Video. Jan. 6, 2014.

SECTION II: Global Trends in Media & Public Opinion on Climate Change Class 2. January 25. Overview of Climate Change Coverage, the Public Opinion Divide, the Politics of Denial & the Trump Administration PRIORITY Oonk, D., Pearman, O., Boykoff, M., Daly, M., McAllister, L., McNatt, M., and Nacu-Schmidt, A. (2017). “US Newspaper Coverage of Climate Change or Global Warming, 2000 – 2017;” “World Newspaper Coverage of Climate Change or Global Warming, 2004 – 2017.” Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Web. Access Jan. 1, 2018. Gillis, J. "Climate Change is Complex. We've Got Answers to Your Questions." New York Times, 2017. Simmons, D. "Mapping-out climate change impacts on real life." Yale Climate Connections. Sep. 19, 2017. (See impacts on U.S. & the world: http://www.impactlab.org/)

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Popovich, N. Schwartz, J. Schlossberg, T. “How Americans Think About Climate Change, in Six Maps.” The New York Times. Mar. 21, 2017. Kirk, K. “Middle Ground: Fertile For Climate Change Dialogue.” Yale Climate Connections. Jan. 1, 2018. Graves, L. “Which works better: climate fear, or climate hope? Well, it's complicated.” The Guardian. Jan. 4, 2018. Van der Linden, S. et al. “Scientific agreement can neutralize the politicization of facts.” Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, Dec. 11, 2017. Painter, James. “Climate Change in the Media: Reporting Risk and Uncertainty.” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 2013. (Read Exec. Summary; Chapter 1) Kalhoefer, Kevin. “The 10 most ridiculous things media figures said about climate change and the environment in 2017,” Media Matters for America, Dec. 28, 2017. Critique of conservative media by progressive think-tank. US Opinion and Politics of Climate Change: Nuccitelli, D. “Americans want a tax on carbon pollution, but how to get one?” The Guardian. Oct. 23, 2017. Plumer, B. “A Climate Science Report That Changes Minds? Don’t Bet On It.” The New York Times. Nov. 4, 2017. Mildenberger, M. et al “New maps of climate opinions by political party,” Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Nov. 29, 2017. Mooney, C. “What position does the Trump administration take on climate change? All of them.” The Washington Post. Dec. 29, 2017. OPTIONAL Climate Change in US Politics: Compare:

• Moran, S. "EPA Chief Scott Pruitt Proposes To Save $33 Billion With Repeal of Obama-Era Energy Plan" Breitbart. Oct. 10, 2017.

• Friedman, L. and Plumer, B. "E.P.A. Announces Repeal of Major Obama-Era Carbon

Emissions Rule." The New York Times. Oct. 9, 2017. Environmental Data and Governance Initiative. “Changing the Digital Climate: How climate change web content is being censored under the Trump Administration.” Read Executive Summary. Jan. 2018.

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Grandoni, Dino. "The Energy 202: Climate change terms altered in another corner of EPA's website." The Washington Post, Sep. 22, 2017. Robbins, D. “This New Study Shows How The Media Makes People Climate Change Cynics -- And What They Can Do Differently.” Media Matters for America. Sep. 18, 2015. Wihbey, J. “’Denier,’ ‘Alarmist,’….” Yale Forum on Climate Change & the Media, Aug. 16, 2012. US Opinion & Politics of Climate Change: Leiserowitz, A., Maibach E., et al. ”The Politics of Global Warming.” Yale Program on Climate Change Communication & George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communications. Oct. 2017. Hirji, Z. “Climate Change Acceptance Grows in U.S., Even as Voters Elect Candidate Who Denies It,” Inside Climate News. Jan. 24, 2017.

Popovich, N., & Albeck-Ripka, L. “How Republicans Think About Climate Change — in Maps.” The New York Times. Dec. 14, 2017. Kroll, Andy. “Why Republicans Still Reject the Science of Global Warming.” The Rolling Stone. Nov. 3, 2016. Beisner, E. Calvin. “America, We Have a Problem.” Watts Up with That? Dec. 12, 2015. (Conservative, climate “denialism” blog) MULTIMEDIA Sinclair, P. “Using Emotion In Discussing Climate Change.” Yale Climate Connections. Oct. 10, 2017. Kassam, A. “'Soul-crushing' video of starving polar bear exposes climate crisis, experts say.” The Guardian, Dec. 8, 2017. Hayhoe, K. “Global Weirding with Katharine Hayhoe.” Youtube. Jan. 18, 2017. Video: Freedman, Andrew. “Science Made Simple: Take the Dog for a Walk.” Climate Central, Nov. 28, 2013. Class 3. January 30. The Global Policies, Politics & Media Coverage of Climate Change (US, China, India, Australia & other countries) PRIORITY United States: Oonk, D., Pearman, O., Boykoff, M., Daly, M., McAllister, L., McNatt, M., and Nacu-Schmidt, A. (2017). “World Newspaper Coverage of Climate Change or Global Warming, 2004 – 2017.”

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Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Web. Access Jan. 1, 2018. Friedman, L. “As U.S. sheds Role as Climate Change Leader, Who Will Fill the Void?” The New York Times. Nov. 12, 2017. McAuley, J. “France’s Macron takes lead in climate change battle, with the U.S. absent.” The Washington Post. Dec. 12, 2017. Delingpole, J. “Delingpole: All Hail Trump’s U.S. – the Only Honest Nation at the U.N.’s Bonn Climate Conference.” Breitbart News (alt-right news site). Nov. 13, 2017. Harder, A. “Trump’s conflicting climate agenda.” Axios. Nov. 13, 2017. Becker, W. “The Skunk at the Climate Party.” Huffington Post. Nov. 10, 2017. World: GermanWatch et al. “Climate Change Performance Index 2018.” Climate Change Performance Index. Schrader, C. “Talanoa: 'Straight talk' to break climate impasses.” Yale Climate Connections. Jan. 1, 2018. Perry, N. “Fiji to highlight Pacific climate plight at German summit.” Fox News. Nov. 5, 2017. Carle, Jill. “Climate Change Seen as Top Global Threat.” Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project, July 14, 2015. Stokes, Bruce, Richard Wike, and Jill Carle. “Global Concern about Climate Change, Broad Support for Limiting Emissions.” Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project, November 5, 2015. St. Fleur, N. “Where in the World is Climate Change Denial Most Prevalent?” New York Times, Dec. 11, 2015. Kuzmin, Andrey. “Russian Media Take Climate Cue from Skeptical Putin.” Reuters, Oct. 29, 2015. Roston, E. “Now Even Syria Is Joining the Paris Climate Agreement.” Bloomberg. Nov. 7. 2017. Manne, R. “Diabolical: Why have we failed to address climate change?” The Monthly. Dec. 2015 – Jan. 2016. Australia: Oliver, A. “Majority of Australians Say Climate Change A Critical Threat To Australia’s Vital Interests.” The Lowy Institute. Jun. 2, 2017.

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Morton, A. “Myths of the Australian climate change debate: A guide to separating fact and fiction on climate change and greenhouse gas targets.” Sydney Morning Herald. Aug. 16, 2017. Vorrath, S. “Australia fails again in climate rankings, but states get honourable mention.” RenewEconomy. Nov. 16, 2017. OPTIONAL Australia: Krien, A. “The Long Goodbye: Coal, Coral and Australia’s Climate Deadlock.” Quarterly Essay. Jun. 2017. (PDF on Canvas). Essay is 100 pages but easy reading. China: Bradsher, K. & Friedman, L. “China Unveils an Ambitious Plan to Curb Climate Change Emissions.” The New York Times. Dec. 19, 2017. Kimmelman, Michael. “Rising Waters Threaten China’s Rising Cities.” The New York Times. Apr. 7, 2017. Bonn Conference of the Parties: Ellis, J. “The Bonn Climate Conference: What You Need to Know.” The New York Times. Nov. 13, 2017. (Also explore the articles and graphics linked to in this article). Jordans, F. “Climate change: 5 things to know about Bonn climate summit.” Fox Business. Nov. 4, 2017. Harvey, F. “US switches focus of its Bonn event from clean energy to fossil fuels” The Guardian. Nov. 10, 2017. MULTIMEDIA Jones, A., Thompson, S. & Ma, J. “The world is projected to emit this much CO2 by 2100, exceeding our carbon budget three times over.” The New York Times. Aug. 29, 2017. Financial Times. “Climate Change Emissions Footprint Calculator.” Class 4. February 2. Covering Catastrophe: Extreme Weather Brings Urgency to Climate Change PRIORITY Shankman, S. “Climate Change Is Happening in the U.S. Now, Federal Report Says — in Charts.” Inside Climate News. Nov. 7, 2017. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) “U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters 2017.” Jan. 2018.

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Media Matters for America. “2017 was a terrible year of climate disasters—and too many media outlets failed to tell the story.” Dec. 20, 2017. American Meteorological Society. “Human influence on climate led to several major weather extremes in 2016.” Press release, Dec. 13, 2017. Irfan, U. and Resnick, B. “Megadisasters devastated America this year. They’re going to get worse,” Vox. Dec. 30, 2017. Burns, A. "Harrowing Storms May Move Climate Debate, if Not G.O.P. Leaders.” The New York Times. Sep. 14, 2017. Hymas, L. “Here's why journalists can be more confident reporting on climate change and extreme weather.” Media Matters for America.” Jan. 5, 2018. Hirji, Z. "Hesitance to Link Some Weather Events to Climate Change 'No Longer Appropriate'." InsideClimate News. Sep. 15, 2016. Verger, R. "Emails reveal squabble among scientists over how to talk to media about climate change." Columbia Journalism Review. May 2, 2017. Lavelle, Marianne. "Pope Calls Out Climate Deniers in Wakes of Hurricane Irma, Harvey" InsideClimateNews, Sep. 12 2017. Barrett, Paul M. “It’s Global Warming, Stupid” (Hurricane Sandy) Bloomberg Business Week, Nov. 1, 2012. Extreme Weather: Hurricanes, Typhoons, etc: Mehta, D. "The Media Really Has Neglected Puerto Rico." FiveThirtyEight. Sep. 28, 2017. Guskin, E. and Dennis, B. "Majority of Americans now say climate change makes hurricanes more intense." The Washington Post. Sep. 28, 2017. Borenstein, S. “Science Says: Era of monster hurricanes roiling the Atlantic” Fox News. Oct. 5, 2017. Shadwick, L. “Climate Change Advocates Use ‘Harvey’ To Tout Global Warming” Breitbart. Aug. 26, 2017. Temperatures, Droughts, Floods and Fire Kahn, Debra, and Mulkern, Anna C. "Scientists see Climate Change in California's Wildfires." Scientific American, Oct. 12, 2017. Hughes, L. “Climate Change And The Victorian Bushfire Threat.” (Review Key Findings and Infographic). Climate Council (Australia). Jan. 18, 2017.

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Neslan, A. “Europe Faces Droughts, Floods, and Storms as Climate Change Accelerates,” The Guardian, Jan. 25, 2017. Sea Level Rise and Oceans

Cave, Damien. "Australia's Greatest (Dying) Global Asset."The New York Times, July 26, 2017.

Bretz, L. “Climate Change and Homes: Who Would Lose the Most to a Rising Tide?” Zillow. Oct. 18, 2017. Real estate site.

OPTIONAL Extreme Weather: Hurricanes, Typhoons, etc:

Roberts, D. "Climate change did not "cause" Harvey or Irma, but it's a huge part of the story". Vox, Sept. 11, 2017. Cumming-Bruce, N. “Extreme Weather Tied to Over 600,000 Deaths Over 2 Decades.” New York Times, Nov. 23, 2015. Summer, T. “Changing climate: 10 years after An Inconvenient Truth.” Science News, April 8, 2016. Sea Level Rise and Oceans Ortiz, E. “How to Save a Sinking Island: As the world gets hotter and sea levels rise, one American island is fighting to stay alive.” NBC News. Nov. 13, 2017.

Urbina, Ian. “Perils of Climate Change Could Swamp Coastal Real Estate.” The New York Times, Nov. 24, 2016. Jenkins, Holman. “Shoreline Gentry Are Fake Climate Victims.” The Wall Street Journal, Nov. 25, 2016. Conservative columnist. Kolbert, Elizabeth. “If We Burned All the Fossil Fuel in the World.” The New Yorker, Sept. 11, 2015. MULTIMEDIA Gore, Al. “Inconvenient Truth” documentary (2006); “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power,” (2017). Watch trailers. Also this “celebrity promo” (2017). Watts, A. “Al Gore’s Inconvenient Freeze,” Watt’s Up with That, Jan. 9, 2018 (Climate skeptic blog) Strauss, Benjamin. “Images Show Impact of Sea Level Rise on Global Icons.” Climate Central. Nov. 8, 2015. Climate Central. “Surging Seas: Sea Level Rise Analysis by Climate Central “ Updated Nov. 8, 2015. Reporting on Climate Adaptation “Infographics: Climate Impacts.”

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SECTION III: Energy, New Technology and Risk Reporting Class 5. February 7. The Fossil Fuel Industry Under Fire: Media Coverage of Coal, Gas, and Oil Controversies PRIORITY International Energy Agency. “World Energy Outlook 2017: Executive Summary.” Nov. 2017. (PDF on Canvas). International Energy Agency. “Key World Energy Statistics 2017” Nov. 2017. (PDF on Canvas). US Energy Information Administration. “Electricity Explained: Electricity in the United States.” Trump Administration & Fossil Fuels: Lefebvre, B. “Trump energy team draws blowback on Florida drilling extension.” Politico, Jan. 10, 2018. Mufson, S. “Trump appointed regulators reject plan to rescue coal and nuclear plants,” Washington Post. Jan. 8, 2018. Meyer, R. “Rick Perry Wants To Bail Out The Coal Industry” The Atlantic. Oct. 13, 2017. International Perspectives on Coal: Williams, J. "Australia Debates: Does a Warming Planet Really Need More Coal?" The New York Times, Oct. 14 2017 Parkinson, G. "Stunning tipping points mean coal will never be great again." RenewEconomy. Sep. 26, 2017. Australia & U.S. McCarthy, S. “Canada, Britain to tout coal phase-out as U.S. champions fossil fuels.” The Globe And Mail. Nov. 12, 2017. Bloomberg Editorial Board. “Germany Is Burning Too Much Coal.” Bloomberg View. Nov. 14, 2017. Hockenos, P. “Germany Is a Coal-Burning, Gas-Guzzling Climate Change Hypocrite.” Foreign Policy. Nov. 13, 2017. Taplin, N. “The Real 'War on Coal' Is in China; President Trump's efforts to support U.S. coal are tangential to the real action.” The Wall Street Journal. Nov. 14, 2017. (PDF on Canvas). Sengupta, S. “Why China Wants to Lead on Climate, but Clings to Coal (for Now).” The New York Times. Nov. 14, 2017.

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Exxon Mobil & Oil Companies: Alexander, K. “Oil giant ExxonMobil counters climate-change suits by SF, other governments.” SFGate, Jan. 8, 2018. Egan, M. “Harvard study: Exxon 'misled the public' on climate change for nearly 40 years.” CNN Money, Aug. 23, 2017. Becker, R. “Inside an investigation into Exxon Mobil’s climate change misinformation.” The Verge. Aug. 23, 2017. Pipelines: BBC News. “Keystone XL pipeline: Why is it so disputed?” BBC. Jan. 24, 2017. Meyer, R. “200,000 Gallons of Oil Spill From the Keystone Pipeline.” Nov. 16, 2017. Starr, P. “Keystone Stakeholders Reax: America on Path to Reaching Energy Potential.” Breitbart. Nov. 20, 2017. OPTIONAL “New York City plans to divest 5bn from fossil fuels and sue oil companies,” The Guardian, Jan. 10, 2018. Russell, Cristine. “Divestment Debate: Should Harvard Divest from Fossil Fuels?” Belfer Center for Science & International Affairs, May 8, 2015. Mooney, C. “It’s the same story under Trump as under Obama: Coal is losing out to natural gas.” Washington Post, Jan. 9, 2018. Supran, G. & Oreskes, N. “Assessing ExxonMobil's climate change communications (1977–2014).” IOP Science. Aug. 23, 2017. MULTIMEDIA Union of Concerned Scientists. “Exxon Knew: Inside the New Climate Investigations.” Webinar. YouTube. Nov. 13, 2015. Woody, Todd. “The old energy economy in 3 maps.” The Atlantic. Nov. 20, 2013. Christian Science Monitor. “Wait-what is ‘fracking’? An energy vocabulary quiz.” Quiz. 2013. Phillips, Ian. “Katy Perry described all the ways climate change is hurting kids.” Business Insider. Video. Dec. 9, 2015. Huffington Post. “Keystone XL spoof features celebrities against controversial pipeline.” Video, Nov. 6, 2013.

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SECTION IV: It’s Not Easy Being Green: The Seesaw Coverage of Renewable and Clean Energy

Class 6: February 9. Green or Clean: The Seesaw Coverage of Renewables PRIORITY International Power Shifts Kirby, A. “100% renewable electricity in reach by 2050.” Climate News Network. Nov. 8, 2017. Jefferies, D. “Five Renewable Energy Trends to Watch in 2018.” The Guardian, Jan. 8, 2018. Krauss, Clifford & Keith Bradsher. “A Signal to Industry to Go Green in an Era of Carbon Reduction.” New York Times, Dec. 14, 2015. US, Renewables and the Clean Power Plan Environmental Protection Agency. Trump Administration “FACT SHEET: Clean Power Plan Overview.” Environmental Protection Agency. Obama Administration Fact Sheet: The Clean Power Plan, Jan. 2017. Clean Energy Under Trump: The Times. “Clean Break.” The Times. Jun. 2, 2017. [PDF on Canvas]. Wright, M. “Even Trump Can’t Dismiss The Success Of Renewables.” The Guardian. Feb. 7, 2017. Woynillowicz, Dan and Merran Smith. “Trump victory won’t halt the U.S. clean energy boom.” The Globe and Mail, Nov. 14, 2016. Gies, Erica. “Is Renewable Energy Trump-Proof?” TakePart blog, Nov. 16, 2016. Biello, David “Obama Has Done More for Clean Energy Than You Think.” Scientific American, Sept. 8, 2015. China Davidson, H. “China on track to lead in renewables as US retreats.” The Guardian, Jan. 10, 2018. Duva, Nicholas. “US-China Smackdown: America No.1 in Wind Power.” CNBC, Nov. 11, 2014. Germany Reed, Stanley. "Germany's Shift to Green Power Stalls, Despite Huge Investment." The New York Times, Oct. 7, 2017.

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Smee, J. “Smart tech propels Germany's switch to renewables.” Deutsche Welle. Oct. 11, 2017. Shankleman, J. “Germany Just Got Almost All of Its Power From Renewable Energy.” Bloomberg, May 16, 2016. Kunzig, R. “Germany Could Be a Model for How We Get Power In the Future.” National Geographic, Oct. 15, 2015. Johnson, Keith. “Germany’s Green Elephant.” Foreign Policy, March 25, 2014. Solar Revolution Wall Street Journal (Debate). “Will New Tariffs Hurt the U.S. Solar-Power Industry?” The Wall Street Journal. Nov. 13, 2017. Hirji, Z. “Solar Job Growth Hits Record High, Shows Economic Power of Clean Energy, Group Says.” InsideClimate News. Feb. 7, 2017. The Economist. “Wind and solar advance in the power war against coal.” Oct. 29, 2016. Read the Fine Print & the Source McDivitt, P. “How Renewable Energy Advocates Are Hurting The Climate Cause.” Ensia. com. Jan. 20, 2017. Capozzola, S. “CNBC Misleads On Renewable Energy.” Breitbart. Oct, 26. 2016. Rebecca Harrington. “Europe’s Most Popular Source of ‘Renewable’ Energy Is Worse for the Planet than Coal.” Tech Insider, Oct. 26, 2015. OPTIONAL Spotts, Pete, “How Solar Is Turning American Energy on Its Head.” Christian Science Monitor, Nov. 12, 2015. Danko, Pete. “Solar Power’s Stunning Growth: US Generation up 100 Percent This Year.” CNBC, Dec. 2, 2014. Woodard, Colin. “America’s First All-Renewable-Energy City.” Politico Magazine, Nov. 17, 2016. MULTIMEDIA Roberts, David “Think You’ve Got Good Energy Policy Ideas? This Tool Lets You See If They’d Work.” Vox, Oct. 31, 2015. Soliwon, Diana. “Photos: Alternative Energy Sources.” US News & World Report, Dec. 1, 2014

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Class 7. February 13. Class Discussion of Speakers: Climate scientist Michael Mann & Washington Post political cartoonist Tom Toles PRIORITY Mann, M. & Toles, T. “The Madhouse Effect: How Climate Change Denial is Threatening Our Planet, Destroying Our Politics, and Driving Us Crazy.” Columbia University Press, 2016.

Read/Skim: Preface: ix to xii; Ch. 1 Science: How it works. 1-13; Ch. 3 “Why Should I Give a Damn.” 31 – 51 (skim); Ch. 4 “The Stages of Denial” 52 – 67; Ch. 8: “A Path Forward.” 131 – 150

Other readings will be added. Class 8. February 16. Green or Clean: The Seesaw Coverage of Nuclear Power PRIORITY Europe: World Nuclear News. “'Anti-nuclear' Germany is Europe's biggest GHG emitter.” World Nuclear News. Nov. 13, 2017. The Financial Times. “Offshore wind’s victory tests Britain’s energy policy.” The Financial Times. Sep. 11, 2017. The Sun. “Brits must try to look on the bright side of Hinkley Point nuclear deal now that Theresa May has given it the go ahead.” The Sun. Sep. 16, 2016. Wright, H. “COP23: France has been named Fossil of the Day at the UN climate change summit.” Verdict. Nov. 9, 2017. De Clercq, G. & Rose, M. “France postpones target for cutting nuclear share of power production.” Reuters. Nov. 7, 2017. US Wall Street Journal (Debate). “Does Nuclear Power Have a Robust Future in the U.S.?” The Wall Street Journal. Nov. 13, 2017. Cardwell, D. “The Murky Future of Nuclear Power in the United States.” The New York Times. Feb. 18, 2017. Plumer, B. “The US keeps shutting down nuclear power plants and replacing them with coal or gas.” Vox News, Nov. 3, 2016. Associated Press. “Regulators ok closure of last state (California) nuclear plant.” VC Star, Jan. 11, 2018.

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LeBlanc, S. “Massachusetts Nuclear Plant Closure Will Put More Pressure on State Energy Policy.” The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Oct. 17, 2015. Japan & China Fackler, M. “Six Years After Fukushima Robots Finally Find Reactors’ Melted Uranium Fuel.” The New York Times. Nov. 19, 2017. Fox News Insider. “Radiation at Japan's Fukushima Reactor Is Now at 'Unimaginable' Levels.” Fox News. Feb. 08, 2017. Soble, Jonathan. “Japan’s Nuclear Industry Finds a Lifeline in India After Foundering Elsewhere.” New York Times, Nov. 11, 2016. OPTIONAL Koerth-Baker, Maggie. “Mixed Fortunes for Nuclear Power.” New York Times, Dec. 7, 2015. Al Jazeera Agencies. “Japan, India sign agreement on civil nuclear power.” Nov. 11, 2016. Hansen, James, Kerry Emanuel, Ken Caldeira, and Tom Wigley. “Nuclear Power Paves the Only Viable Path Forward on Climate Change.” The Guardian, Dec. 3, 2015. Leaky, Robert. “Nuclear Is Not the Answer to the Climate Crisis.” The Guardian, Dec. 6, 2015. BBC News. “Can We Learn to Live with Nuclear Technology?” Sept. 2, 2015. Diesendorf, M. “Accidents, Waste and Weapons: Nuclear Power Isn’t Worth the Risks.” The Conversation, May 18, 2015. MULTIMEDIA Russell, R. “40 years of German anti-nuclear action.” Deutsche Welle. Jun. 30, 2017. READINGS FOR CLASSES 9 to 14 WILL BE POSTED ON CANVAS.