I’ve been much less certain about my predictions in years past, but I’m confident that 2020 is going to be the year when the climate crisis becomes a central story for news organizations. It will take its place where it deserves to be — as a touching-every-aspect-of-life story.
The climate crisis is an existential threat for the world as we’ve known it. Given that, will the story get all the resources it deserves from already-strapped news organizations? Probably not. But there were multiple examples of serious journalistic commitments in 2019 which point the way forward. Some examples:
In the tech world, where I’ve lived for the last six years, there are many communities of people forming that are devoting themselves to working on climate solutions. Bryce Roberts, a venture capitalist, said on Twitter recently, “Climate change is the new crypto. Many of the smartest people in tech shifting their time, attention and dollars to the escalating climate crisis.”
What pushed the story to the forefront? Certainly Greta Thunberg deserves a lot of credit. And then there are the alarming, ticking-time-bomb facts: Climate-related disasters are happening with ever greater frequency, and the warming of the planet is accelerating. I also think the growing backlash against plastics has made our disregard for the planet a real, tangible thing for people, as opposed to something scientific, distant, and amorphous.
Many rightfully argue that all of this should have happened sooner, it’s not happening fast enough, and there still aren’t enough attention and resources being committed given the scale and urgency of the problem. But I’m choosing to see the glass as half full and to take comfort in the public commitments from news organizations, which are solid steps in the right direction.
I also think you’ll see more news organizations make sustainability commitments themselves, like The Guardian’s pledge to achieve net zero emissions by 2030. I believe companies across all industries will not be able to hire and retain the next generation of talent if they don’t act sustainably.
Geoff Dembicki of Vice says that as we say goodbye to the 2010’s, we’re also saying goodbye to polite conversation about climate change. I hope he’s right.
Fiona Spruill is former chief operating officer at Meetup and a former editor at The New York Times.
I’ve been much less certain about my predictions in years past, but I’m confident that 2020 is going to be the year when the climate crisis becomes a central story for news organizations. It will take its place where it deserves to be — as a touching-every-aspect-of-life story.
The climate crisis is an existential threat for the world as we’ve known it. Given that, will the story get all the resources it deserves from already-strapped news organizations? Probably not. But there were multiple examples of serious journalistic commitments in 2019 which point the way forward. Some examples:
In the tech world, where I’ve lived for the last six years, there are many communities of people forming that are devoting themselves to working on climate solutions. Bryce Roberts, a venture capitalist, said on Twitter recently, “Climate change is the new crypto. Many of the smartest people in tech shifting their time, attention and dollars to the escalating climate crisis.”
What pushed the story to the forefront? Certainly Greta Thunberg deserves a lot of credit. And then there are the alarming, ticking-time-bomb facts: Climate-related disasters are happening with ever greater frequency, and the warming of the planet is accelerating. I also think the growing backlash against plastics has made our disregard for the planet a real, tangible thing for people, as opposed to something scientific, distant, and amorphous.
Many rightfully argue that all of this should have happened sooner, it’s not happening fast enough, and there still aren’t enough attention and resources being committed given the scale and urgency of the problem. But I’m choosing to see the glass as half full and to take comfort in the public commitments from news organizations, which are solid steps in the right direction.
I also think you’ll see more news organizations make sustainability commitments themselves, like The Guardian’s pledge to achieve net zero emissions by 2030. I believe companies across all industries will not be able to hire and retain the next generation of talent if they don’t act sustainably.
Geoff Dembicki of Vice says that as we say goodbye to the 2010’s, we’re also saying goodbye to polite conversation about climate change. I hope he’s right.
Fiona Spruill is former chief operating officer at Meetup and a former editor at The New York Times.
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Candis Callison Taking a cue from Indigenous journalists on climate change
Carrie Brown-Smith Engaged journalism: It’s finally happening
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Monique Judge The year to organize, unionize, and fight
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Sarah Alvarez I’m ready for post-news
Tonya Mosley The neutrality vs. objectivity game ends
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Greg Emerson News apps fall further behind
Masuma Ahuja Slower, quieter, more measured and thoughtful
Don Day Respect the non-paying audience
Emily Withrow The year we kill the news article
Jim Brady We’ll complain about other people living in bubbles while ignoring our own
Mira Lowe The year of student-powered journalism
Ben Werdmuller Use the tools of journalism to save it
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Brian Moritz The end of “stick to sports”
Heather Bryant Some kinds of journalism aren’t worth saving
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Rachel Davis Mersey The business of local TV news will enter its downward slide
Matthew Pressman News consumers divide into haves and have-nots
Jennifer Brandel A love letter from the year 2073
Craig Newmark Formalizing newsrooms’ battle against disinformation
Joni Deutsch Podcasting unsilences the silent
Seth C. Lewis 20 questions for 2020
Mike Caulfield Native verification tools for the blue checkmark crowd
Barbara Gray Join local libraries on the frontlines of civic engagement
Nathalie Malinarich Betting on loyalty
Juleyka Lantigua A changing industry amps up podcasters’ ambitions
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen The business we want, not the business we had
J. Siguru Wahutu Western journalists, learn from your African peers
Cindy Royal Prepare media students for skills, not job titles
Cristina Kim Public media stops trying to serve “everybody”
Errin Haines Race and gender aren’t a 2020 story — they’re the story
Michael W. Wagner Increasingly fractured, but little bit deliberative
Colleen Shalby Journalists become media literacy teachers
Elizabeth Hansen and Jesse Holcomb Local news initiatives run into a capital shortage
Sarah Stonbely More people start caring about news inequality
Fiona Spruill The climate crisis gets the coverage it deserves
Victor Pickard We reclaim a public good
Geneva Overholser Death to bothsidesism
Mariana Moura Santos The future of journalism is collaborative
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Stefanie Murray Charitable giving goes collaborative
Kourtney Bitterly Transparency isn’t just a desire, it’s an expectation
A.J. Bauer A fork in the road for conservative media
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Lucas Graves A smarter conversation about how (and why) fact-checking matters
Sarah Schmalbach Journalist, quantify thyself
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John Keefe Journalism gets hacked
Alice Antheaume Trade “politics” for “power”
Laura E. Davis Know the context your journalism is operating within
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Alfred Hermida and Mary Lynn Young The promise of nonprofit journalism
Margarita Noriega The platforms try to figure out what to do with single-subject newsrooms
Nushin Rashidian Are platforms a bridge or a lifeline?
Bill Adair A Nobel Prize, a Brad Pitt film, and a Taylor Swift song
Dan Shanoff Sports media enters the Bronny era
Alexandra Borchardt Get out of the office and talk to people
Gordon Crovitz Fighting misinformation requires journalism, not secret algorithms
Meredith Artley Stronger solidarity among news organizations
Kerri Hoffman Opening closed systems
Elizabeth Dunbar Frank talk, and then action
Whitney Phillips A time to question core beliefs
Tanya Cordrey Saying no to more good ideas
Tom Glaisyer Journalism can emerge newly vibrant and powerful
Imaeyen Ibanga Let’s take it slow
Rachel Glickhouse Journalists get left behind in the industry’s decline
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Kevin D. Grant The free press stands against authoritarians’ attacks on truth
Jeff Kofman Speed through technology
Eric Nuzum Podcasting finally creates another mega-hit show
Rick Berke Incoming fire from both left and right
Irving Washington Leadership isn’t something you learn on the job
Jonas Kaiser Russian bots are just today’s slacktivists
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Jakob Moll A slow-moving tech backlash among young people
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Talia Stroud The work of reconnecting starts November 4
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Steve Henn The dawning audio web
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Jake Shapiro Podcasting gets listener relationship management