Publication Items

CDC Data Is Copious, But Can You Trust It? [1]

When Reporter’s Toolbox scours a new dataset for your environment and energy reporting use, it asks a key question: Where does the data come from? This time, the answer serves more as a warning. The latest column looks at a previously stellar data source — the CDC — and finds it lacking. Here’s what you need to know.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Consumer [3]
Environmental Politics [4]
Government [5]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Policy [8]
Science [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [11]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about CDC Data Is Copious, But Can You Trust It? [1]
Closing the Trust Gap With Environmental Justice Communities [13]

Communities impacted by environmental justice issues often view the media with wariness deeply rooted in history. But some journalists and EJ advocates are working together to forge a better relationship. While recognizing the challenges, they offer encouragement with a set of guiding principles for reporters who want to gain the trust of communities and tell accurate, respectful and impactful environmental stories.

SEJ Publication Types:
Features [14]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [15]
Climate Change [16]
Environmental Justice [17]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
People & Population [18]
Planning & Growth [19]
Policy [8]
Pollution [20]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [22]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Closing the Trust Gap With Environmental Justice Communities [13]
Counting Heat Deaths When Official Data Is Deceptive [23]

Climate change’s real impact is difficult to measure when it comes to heat-related illness and death. That’s due, in large part, to the way health agencies count — or actually undercount — the numbers. But the latest TipSheet spotlights an approach journalists can use to tally the true toll. Plus, additional reporting resources to cover the story in your community.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [24]
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change [16]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
People & Population [18]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Counting Heat Deaths When Official Data Is Deceptive [23]
OSHA Has Data. Does It Have Safety and Health? [25]

Occupational exposure to toxic chemicals can serve as an early warning system for broader public risks, just one reason the extensive data gathered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a valuable tool for environmental journalists — even if much of the resulting reporting focuses on agency failings. Reporter’s Toolbox on OSHA datasets.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [26]
Economy & Business [27]
Environmental Politics [4]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Laws & Regulations [28]
Policy [8]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about OSHA Has Data. Does It Have Safety and Health? [25]
Unpacking Puerto Rico’s Water Crisis [29]

Puerto Rico is suffering from months of water rationing. But for journalists to fully cover this many-layered water story requires a real understanding of how the U.S. territory's politics and history have brought it to this crossroads, argues columnist Yessenia Funes. That, plus a capacity to listen to affected communities, report on solutions and consider partnerships with local journalists.

SEJ Publication Types:
Voices of Environmental Justice [30]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Justice [17]
Environmental Politics [4]
Government [5]
Health [6]
Infrastructure [31]
Journalism & Media [7]
Natural Resources [32]
People & Population [18]
Policy [8]
Water & Oceans [33]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Unpacking Puerto Rico’s Water Crisis [29]
‘Trade Secrets’ Keep Journalists, Public in the Dark [34]

So-called confidential business information is a major obstacle to the dissemination of knowledge about environmental threats for the public, cautions WatchDog Opinion. Part of the problem is how federal agencies treat requests for confidentiality, and so is the way environmental laws handle the issue. A look at the worst offenders, and a call for journalists to break through the veil of secrecy.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog [35]
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals [26]
Economy & Business [27]
Environmental Politics [4]
Government [5]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Laws & Regulations [28]
Policy [8]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about ‘Trade Secrets’ Keep Journalists, Public in the Dark [34]
Oysters, Boisterous or Scarce, Fuel Local Environment Stories [36]

The world may be your oyster, but if you’re an environmental journalist, the oyster may also be your story. The latest TipSheet points out (amid numerous tasty serving tips) that oysters say a great deal about the health of local waters … and of the humans who consume the mollusk. Get a dozen-plus oyster story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [24]
Topics on the Beat:
Biodiversity [37]
Environmental Health [38]
Fish & Fisheries [39]
Food [40]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Natural Resources [32]
Pollution [20]
Water & Oceans [33]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
California [41]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [42]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [43]
Northwest (OR WA) [44]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [22]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Oysters, Boisterous or Scarce, Fuel Local Environment Stories [36]
Are We Ready for the Next Pandemic? [45]

If you’ve been pondering what recent Cyclospora, Legionella and Ebola outbreaks tell us about the state of preparedness for future pandemics, Backgrounder has some sobering insights. A reminder of the uneven response to COVID-19 and a look forward at how current Trump administration policy has weakened public health structures and likely left us unready for what’s ahead.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders [46]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [47]
Government [5]
Health [6]
People & Population [18]
Policy [8]
Science [9]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [11]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Are We Ready for the Next Pandemic? [45]
Wildfire Data, With Its Hair on Fire [48]

As wildfires rage in the U.S. West, Canada and other hot spots around the globe, reporters covering this environmental hazard in the United States can access high-quality data of exceptional timeliness via the Watch Duty app, finds the latest Reporter’s Toolbox. The tool offers everything from emergency notifications to data deep dives, all smartly integrated in its mapping interface.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters [47]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
California [41]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [49]
Northwest (OR WA) [44]
International [11]
Canada [50]
Europe [51]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Wildfire Data, With Its Hair on Fire [48]
Extremely Hot Weather Cooks Up Unusually Awful Air Pollution [52]

Summertime and the livin' is smoggy. American air may be clearer now than when the Clean Air Act was passed in 1970, but pollutants still abound. Heat and sunlight stoke chemical reactions that exacerbate health hazards. And worsening wildfires mix in harmful smoke. The latest TipSheet has more than a dozen story ideas and reporting resources.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet [24]
Topics on the Beat:
Activism [15]
Air [53]
Chemicals [26]
Climate Change [16]
Energy & Fuel [54]
Environmental Health [38]
Government [5]
Health [6]
Journalism & Media [7]
Laws & Regulations [28]
Pollution [20]
Transportation [55]
Region:
National (U.S.) [10]
International [11]
Visibility:
Public [12]
- Read more about Extremely Hot Weather Cooks Up Unusually Awful Air Pollution [52]

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