Journalism and science for climate

The project "Journalism and science for climate" aims to improve the insufficient and often misleading coverage of climate change mitigation in the media in Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia. We implement it in partnership with Climateka (Bulgaria), Klima101 (Serbia), Masfel Fok (Hungary), InforClima (Romania) and with the support of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI). We believe that improved communication between journalists and scientists working on climate issues is crucial for public support for a climate-neutral economy.
At the end of 2021 we compiled a short questionnaire for journalists and scientists in Bulgaria to check the initial assumptions about the state of reporting on scientific topics in our country and get information that will help us to design seminars that should improve the current situation. A similar study was conducted in other countries participating in the project.
The results of the survey show that 85% of the surveyed representatives of the scientific community believe that the coverage of science in the media is average or below average. Both scholars and journalists think that there is a lack of good communication between media representatives and scholars, just as there is a lack of interest in scientific and in-depth topics in society.
Answers of representatives of the academic community to the question "How well is science covered in the media?" are presented in the graph. On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 is the most unsatisfactory and 10 is the most satisfactory.
Most popular answers from journalists to the question "What are the most common problems you encounter when working with scientists and experts?" are:
- Scholars are reluctant to appear in the media and sometimes refuse to give interviews;
- It is difficult for them to present complex scientific problems in understandable language.
26 representatives of the academic community and 23 journalists from Bulgaria answered the questionnaire. It should be noted that the sample in this study is not representative, but it indicates the general perception of the problems in the field of reporting on scientific topics and clearly reflects the need for better cooperation between science and the media.
In February, a round table was held with journalists to discuss the problems and challenges facing the media and journalists in covering science, and in particular topics related to climate change, which launched a series of seminars on the subject. The first seminar "How to translate climate science into an accessible language" for scientists and experts was attended by 15 scientists from different disciplines. It presented tips, tools and good practices for communicating science in a more accessible language. As well as an introduction to the media context and what journalists need.
An event for scientists and journalists was held on May 11, 2022, in which they discussed important aspects of the joint work of the two groups to improve the coverage of climate science. Participants had the opportunity to establish personal contacts and thus create a long-term bridge between science and journalism.
You can read more details about the activities carried out in Bulgaria at the following link. Similar reports from other countries are published on the partner organizations websites:
Under the project, we are building a community of interested journalists and scientists, providing them with training and the opportunity to work together to produce science-based journalistic articles covering various aspects of climate change mitigation. We also encourage cross-border regional cooperation for the exchange of knowledge and experience.
Two international online seminars with renowned international lecturers are planned for June, which we will announce later.
The text was created under the project "Journalism and Climate Science", which is implemented by the Bluelink Foundation in partnership with Climateka (Bulgaria), Klima101 (Serbia), Masfel Fok (Hungary), InforClima (Romania) with the support of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI).
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