Publication Items

Summertime and the Air is (Cough) Unhealthy

With summer heat in many cities comes worsening air pollution, and a crop of smog-related stories. This week's TipSheet explains how smog forms and harms health, then helps you report on local smog factors and learn if your area is in "nonattainment" with EPA ozone standards, themselves a shifting target under Trump.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Air
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Summertime and the Air is (Cough) Unhealthy
Award-Winner Looks Ahead to Prospects of a Perfect Storm

Extreme weather hypotheticals can be hard to cover. But when news teams Texas Tribune and ProPublica partnered on an award-winning investigation into how a major hurricane in Houston could kill thousands and cripple the national economy, they produced an innovative digital reporting package that brought home the human impacts.

SEJ Publication Types:
Inside Story
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change
Disasters
Economy & Business
Journalism & Media
Region:
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Award-Winner Looks Ahead to Prospects of a Perfect Storm
No ‘Day at the Beach’ with Pollution-related Closures

Every summer, beaches are closed across the United States because of pollution that can bring disease to beachgoers. That suggests local stories, such as problems with sewage systems and algal blooms known as 'red tides.' The latest TipSheet shares resources and info to help you cover the local beach closure beat.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Health
Journalism & Media
Laws & Regulations
Pollution
Water & Oceans
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about No ‘Day at the Beach’ with Pollution-related Closures
Using Social Media for Storytelling

Find ways to enhance your digital storytelling with the first in a series of Reporter's Toolbox columns that look at the new generation of quick-to-learn, easy-to-use techniques. This week, we look at powerful (and free) tools found on some of the biggest social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.

SEJ Publication Types:
Reporters Toolbox
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Using Social Media for Storytelling
Feds Scrub Climate Info; plus Libel Suit, Spill Catcher, Surveillance & Water Data

As some warned, federal environmental agencies have begun to purge web info on topics like climate change. WatchDog TipSheet has that story, plus items about an unusual libel lawsuit, a news outfit using satellite for groundtruthing, a new source of online water data, how journalists can protect against surveillance and more.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change
Disasters
Energy & Fuel
Environmental Politics
Government
Journalism & Media
Laws & Regulations
Water & Oceans
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Feds Scrub Climate Info; plus Libel Suit, Spill Catcher, Surveillance & Water Data
Get Ready for Hurricanes

The 2017 hurricane season officially begins this week and experts say it may be worse than usual. So the latest TipSheet has sources and tools to help you prepare for your hurricane coverage. Understand the importance of landfall and storm path, find out about this year's big wild card, and get tips for staying safe.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Climate Change
Disasters
Journalism & Media
Region:
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV)
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT)
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN)
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Get Ready for Hurricanes
Lead in Drinking Water Remains Widespread Problem

More stories about lead contamination of drinking water are unfolding around the country, even as the Flint disaster lingers. A new Issue Backgrounder details how lead gets into drinking water, how it leads to health problems among the most prevalent in the United States, and what solutions might address the crisis.

SEJ Publication Types:
Backgrounders
Topics on the Beat:
Chemicals
Health
Laws & Regulations
People & Population
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Lead in Drinking Water Remains Widespread Problem
Are You Ready for Flood Season?

Flooding is no longer just a local disaster story. As the phenomenon worsens and spreads, it simultaneously raises issues like development, insurance, stormwater management and climate change. The latest TipSheet runs down longer-term angles of flooding, and offers sources and tools to better cover your own flood stories.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Disasters
Journalism & Media
Water & Oceans
Region:
National (U.S.)
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT)
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN)
South America
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Are You Ready for Flood Season?
Working with Leaks and Whistleblowers, Part Two

In the second of a two-part WatchDog TipSheet on the relationship between journalists and whistleblowers, we take a closer look at how to apply basic security measures, the importance of obtaining documents and understanding the legal status of leaked information. And in case you missed it, Part One of the series.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Activism
Environmental Politics
Government
Journalism & Media
Laws & Regulations
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Working with Leaks and Whistleblowers, Part Two
Connecting Superfund to Environmental Justice Stories

Concerns about the greater impact of pollution on poor people and ethnic minorities are not new. But now, environmental reporters have more tools than ever for finding and telling these stories. The latest TipSheet spotlights a useful EPA app and numerous other sources to track this ongoing story.

SEJ Publication Types:
TipSheet
Topics on the Beat:
Activism
Environmental Politics
Health
People & Population
Waste
Region:
National (U.S.)
Visibility:
Public
- Read more about Connecting Superfund to Environmental Justice Stories