Publication Items

Sewage Sludge Can Spread the Harm of Many Toxic Chemicals [1]

What was once benignly dubbed biosolids is more accurately tagged toxic sludge. And some of it may be finding its way into our food. The latest TipSheet reports how that came to be despite (or perhaps because of) Clean Water Act regulation, and how hard it is to calculate the potential harms. Plus, more than a dozen reporting ideas and resources for this highly localizable story.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Agriculture [3]
Environmental Politics [4]
Food [5]
Government [6]
Health [7]
Journalism & Media [8]
Laws & Regulations [9]
Pollution [10]
Waste [11]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Sewage Sludge Can Spread the Harm of Many Toxic Chemicals [1]
Better Communicating for the Climate [14]

What if the news, instead of inducing fear or anxiety, was rewarding for the brain? That question sparked the creation of a novel, game show–inspired approach to helping journalists unlock new ways of reporting, using healthier, more holistic communication techniques. Drawing on research from neuroscience, community psychology and journalism, “Jourpardy” offers fresh perspectives on how to avoid doom-and-gloom reporting.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Disasters [17]
Journalism & Media [8]
Science [18]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
International [19]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Better Communicating for the Climate [14]
Is Climate Data at Risk From Natural Disasters? [20]

When Hurricane Helene ravaged a swath of the Southeast in September, leaving at least 230 people dead, it also temporarily took out a critical repository of climate data in Asheville, North Carolina. That got Reporter’s Toolbox thinking about the risks to some of the nation’s other important storehouses of environmental information, whether from extreme weather, hackers or politics. Here’s a shortlist.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Disasters [17]
Environmental Politics [4]
Environmental Studies [22]
Government [6]
Science [18]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [23]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [24]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Is Climate Data at Risk From Natural Disasters? [20]
Harris Must Shed More Light on Her Press Freedom Views [25]

Yes, press freedom advocates worry over the prospects of a Trump administration that considers journalists “the enemy of the people.” But the new WatchDog Opinion column argues the Harris campaign has, for its part, been uncomfortably quiet on those same issues. So it’s time for the Democratic presidential hopeful to answer some questions. WatchDog has 10 we should all be asking.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [26]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [6]
Journalism & Media [8]
Policy [27]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Harris Must Shed More Light on Her Press Freedom Views [25]
Will Your Local Dam Turn Deadly in the Next Big Storm? [28]

The devastating death toll and damage from Hurricane Helene are a dire warning of the risks of extreme weather and flooding. But one notable hazard is that such flooding may overwhelm any one of the thousands of small, neglected U.S. dams. TipSheet examines the issue and offers more than a dozen story angles and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Disasters [17]
Infrastructure [29]
Journalism & Media [8]
Laws & Regulations [9]
Water & Oceans [30]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
California [31]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [32]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [24]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Will Your Local Dam Turn Deadly in the Next Big Storm? [28]
Public Records Bring Independent Reporting to the Next Level [33]

Freelancers may worry they don’t have time to chase down government documents. But if you’re looking for tools to help get your hands on public records, help is on the way. In the new Freelance Files, MuckRock’s Dillon Bergin offers a step-by-step guide to filing document requests, organizing and analyzing your documents and joining the FOIA community. Get started [33].

SEJ Publication Types:
Freelance Files [34]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [35]
Government [6]
Journalism & Media [8]
Nuclear Power & Radiation [36]
Pollution [10]
Water & Oceans [30]
Wildlife [37]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [38]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Public Records Bring Independent Reporting to the Next Level [33]
Does Kamala Harris Have a Green Streak? [39]

While Kamala Harris has provided little detail about what her environment and energy policies would be as president, her record has been enough to win her the quick support of most major environmental groups, finds the latest Issue Backgrounder. A look at her record on the Green New Deal and fracking, her presidential environmental platform and her contrasts with GOP rival Donald Trump.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [40]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [41]
Climate Change [16]
Energy & Fuel [42]
Environmental Politics [4]
Government [6]
Infrastructure [29]
Laws & Regulations [9]
Policy [27]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
California [31]
International [19]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Does Kamala Harris Have a Green Streak? [39]
Looking for Environmental Justice Through the Smog [43]

A serious air pollutant prevalent in underserved communities, Superfund hazardous waste sites nearby, public drinking water systems out of compliance. All are new or enhanced insights found in an improved version of the federal government’s EJScreen data tool. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox reviews the changes and how they can be used to tell stories of real people’s daily lives.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [21]
Topics on the Beat:
Air [35]
Chemicals [44]
Environmental Justice [45]
Government [6]
Health [7]
Journalism & Media [8]
Laws & Regulations [9]
People & Population [46]
Pollution [10]
Transportation [47]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Looking for Environmental Justice Through the Smog [43]
Coequal Catastrophes — Quammen on Climate Change, Extinction and Epidemics [48]

Biodiversity loss can seem like a remote and abstract problem that pales in comparison to climate worries. But award-winning author David Quammen sees them as coequal threats, along with emerging diseases, and encourages journalists to illuminate the relationships between them. His advice includes getting out of big cities to see the extinction crisis firsthand and weaving humor and hope into your writing.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [15]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [49]
Chemicals [44]
Climate Change [16]
Environmental Health [50]
Environmental Studies [22]
Health [7]
Journalism & Media [8]
Pollution [10]
Science [18]
Wildlife [37]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
International [19]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about Coequal Catastrophes — Quammen on Climate Change, Extinction and Epidemics [48]
A Renowned Birder Shatters the Audubon Myth [51]

In his fascinating volume about John James Audubon, world-renowned naturalist-writer-illustrator Kenn Kaufman pays homage to the artist but meticulously dissects the man, writes BookShelf Editor Tom Henry. A review of “The Birds That Audubon Missed: Discovery and Desire in the American Wilderness” depicts how Audubon, driven by the rivalries of his time, marred his own legacy with factual errors and outright fraud.

SEJ Publication Types:
BookShelf [52]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [49]
Environmental Politics [4]
Environmental Studies [22]
Science [18]
Wildlife [37]
Region:
National (U.S.) [12]
International [19]
Visibility:
Public [13]
- Read more about A Renowned Birder Shatters the Audubon Myth [51]

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