Climate Matters: Increasing Climate Literacy Through Broadcast Meteorologists

Abstract:

Broadcast meteorologists are among the most trusted members of the media landscape and they have a unique opportunity to reach the broad public with information about climate change. A recent survey by Maibach, et al. (2015) has shown that more than 90% of TV weathercasters think that their audience is at least somewhat interested in learning about the local impacts of climate change and 7 in 10 think that it is appropriate for them to report the science of climate change to their audience. But about half of these TV weathercasters have experienced obstacles to reporting climate change – citing lack of time to research and produce material, in addition to lack of access to appropriate visuals/graphics and access to trusted scientific information.

Climate Matters is an NSF funded program that partners with broadcast meteorologists to deliver scientifically sound climate change information to the public that is local and relevant. A team of climate scientists, meteorologists, data analysts, journalists, and multimedia artists analyze and prepare content on a weekly basis so that it may be readily included in a broadcast weather segment, online or during community outreach. The program started as a pilot project with just one meteorologist in 2010 before Climate Central launched a full-time, nationwide program in 2012. Since then, Climate Matters has grown to include over 250 meteorologists strong and in more than 100 markets across the country, including Spanish language TV stations.