#7 COVIDCalls 3.24.2020 – Disaster, Science, & Journalism with Andy Revkin

What are the challenges for journalists to report accurate information when there is a disconnect between science and politics? How do news consumers become discerning about the information they trust in the internet age? Andrew Revkin, a path-breaking environmental journalist and founding director of the Initiative on Communication Innovation and Impact at Columbia University's Earth Institute, discusses the role of journalists during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as how mitigation measures and virtual connectivity are reshaping the possibilities of journalism. Revkin discusses how the make-up and leadership of newsrooms can lead to everything being seen through the lens of politics, and how that is affecting the coverage of COVID-19. He also talks about founding the Initiative on Communication Innovation and Impact at The Earth Institute, and the importance of communication and social science on the subject of climate change. Revkin talks about the roles journalists and academics can play during disasters as well as the importance of autoethnography during the pandemic and beyond. For further reading: “The Press and the Pandemic: Tips from Pulitzer Winner Laurie Garrett” “The Pandemic was Predicted - So What?” “Yelling ‘Fire’ on a Hot Planet”