Publication Items

Worldview Data Expands Environment Reporter’s Strike Zone [1]

A sweeping array of satellites observes our planet and sends vast amounts of data back — data that the powerful NASA Worldview website can translate into graphic form to help journalists tell some of the environment beat’s most central stories. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox explores the strengths and weaknesses of Worldview in covering everything from wildfires and floods to climate.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [3]
Environmental Health [4]
Government [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Science [7]
Technology [8]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
International [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Worldview Data Expands Environment Reporter’s Strike Zone [1]
Grant Brings Documentary Team to Chesapeake Bay’s Vastness [12]

New York-based documentarians Sebastian Tuinder and Duy Linh Tu took their multimedia skills on the road to explore the environmental problems plaguing the Chesapeake Bay. The resulting project, “Trouble in the Chesapeake,” was nominated for a local Emmy award and was credited with helping efforts to curb over-the-limit discharges from Maryland’s wastewater plants. Lessons learned from the grant-funded effort, in the latest FEJ StoryLog.

SEJ Publication Types:
FEJ StoryLog [13]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [14]
Climate Change [3]
Environmental Health [4]
Fish & Fisheries [15]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [16]
Pollution [17]
Waste [18]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [20]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Grant Brings Documentary Team to Chesapeake Bay’s Vastness [12]
Eco-Alternatives to the Perfect, Weedless Lawn [21]

A good and very localizable environmental story is right outside your front door … or at least outside your neighbor’s. Lawns and the myriad ways they are managed can provide a window into wildness, or resource use, or chemical pollution. The latest TipSheet offers more than a dozen story ideas and reporting resources, from xeriscaping and butterfly gardens to nurseries and planning boards.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [22]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [14]
Chemicals [23]
Consumer [24]
Environmental Health [4]
Government [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [25]
Planning & Growth [26]
Pollution [17]
Waste [18]
Water & Oceans [19]
Wildlife [27]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
International [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Eco-Alternatives to the Perfect, Weedless Lawn [21]
Making Sense of Jewish Perspectives on the Climate Story [28]

American Jews are heavily involved in climate action in both the political and civic realms. But current events in Israel and Gaza can make it hard for U.S. journalists to cover environmental stories important to Jews at home or abroad. Jewish freelancer Ethan Brown on differences and synergies between Israeli and American Jewish environmentalism and how to approach stories within each community.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [29]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [30]
Chemicals [23]
Climate Change [3]
Disasters [31]
Environmental Health [4]
Environmental Justice [32]
Environmental Politics [33]
Forests [34]
Government [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Military [35]
People & Population [36]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [37]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
International [10]
Middle East [38]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Making Sense of Jewish Perspectives on the Climate Story [28]
Sea Surface Temperature Data Tells Many Environmental Stories [39]

With hurricane season expected to kick into high gear, a key data source for reporters is sea surface temperatures. But this widely available information can also tell reporters something about many other water-related environment stories, whether algal blooms, bacterial risks to public health or the prospects for entire estuarine systems. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox helps you dip your toe into this important data pool.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [3]
Environmental Health [4]
Fish & Fisheries [15]
Health [40]
Journalism & Media [6]
Science [7]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [20]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [41]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [42]
International [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Sea Surface Temperature Data Tells Many Environmental Stories [39]
Beach Nourishment Offers Challenging Local Environmental Stories [43]

It’s peak beach season around much of the United States, with its timeless traditions of sunbathing, beach reads, swimming and beachcombing. But nature has its own ideas about shorelines, stripping some beaches and growing others. Humans, too, have their own beach engineering enterprises, with their own environmental impacts. The latest TipSheet helps you cover your local beach scene, with questions to ask, story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [22]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Health [4]
Journalism & Media [6]
People & Population [36]
Water & Oceans [19]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Beach Nourishment Offers Challenging Local Environmental Stories [43]
Up for a Challenge — Fifty Environmental Journalists on the Profession and Its Future [44]

Environmental journalists tend to be intrepid and creative individuals who will fight to work their beat against all odds. That’s one of the findings of a journalism educator who is studying the rise of environmental journalism as a news priority. In this EJ Academy, Suzannah Evans Comfort talks about key takeaways from her research – and her next big question.

SEJ Publication Types:
EJ Academy [45]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Justice [32]
Environmental Studies [46]
Journalism & Media [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Up for a Challenge — Fifty Environmental Journalists on the Profession and Its Future [44]
Track Harmful Algal Blooms With Data. Avoid Bad Clams [47]

It’s summertime and the living is easy for algae that can be hazardous to human health. Climate heating and agricultural pollution are making the problem worse. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox explores useful sources of data for tracking trends. Plus, tips on how to use the data for local reporting on the risks posed by this seasonal threat.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [14]
Biodiversity [48]
Climate Change [3]
Economy & Business [49]
Environmental Health [4]
Fish & Fisheries [15]
Food [50]
Government [5]
Health [40]
Journalism & Media [6]
Natural Resources [16]
Pollution [17]
Science [7]
Water & Oceans [19]
Wildlife [27]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about Track Harmful Algal Blooms With Data. Avoid Bad Clams [47]
At Mid-Year, SEJ Celebrates New Records, New Faces and Important Legacies [51]

SEJ board president Luke Runyon (pictured, left) shares news about the April 2024 annual conference in Philadelphia, conference director Jay Letto’s retirement, organizational updates, changes on the board of directors and upcoming elections, the new SEJ Future Council and the call for nominations for the annual Stolberg Meritorious Service Award.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJ Presidents Report [52]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [6]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
International [10]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about At Mid-Year, SEJ Celebrates New Records, New Faces and Important Legacies [51]
What Would a Second Trump Reign Mean for Press Freedom? [53]

The possibility of a second Trump administration has WatchDog Opinion sweating blood over the potential for a serious undermining of the press, whether by choking off access to public records, opening up libel laws that help protect journalists from libel suits by public figures or going to virtual war with the news media. What might be in store if Trump wins back the presidency?

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [54]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [33]
Government [5]
Journalism & Media [6]
Laws & Regulations [25]
Policy [55]
Region:
National (U.S.) [9]
Visibility:
Public [11]
- Read more about What Would a Second Trump Reign Mean for Press Freedom? [53]

Pages