Climate Change Lesson 14 : Climate Change in the News

1. Frame the context of climate change communication.

Have students read Making Sense of Climate Change Science (student resource). In groups identify some potential challenges of communicating about climate change. [Misinformation, misunderstandings (ex. of causes), finding relevance in the abundance of information available]

2. How do climate researchers communicate with each other?

What disciplines might climate researchers represent? [Meteorology, biology, chemistry, geography, economics, geology, agriculture, atmospheric science, political science, education, sociology]

Why are so many disciplines involved in climate research? [Climate change is a complex issue that requires many perspectives and an interdisciplinary approach].

Show the Three-Prong Approach to Climate Change Research (transparency master). Discuss.

3. Looking at headlines.

Divide students into small groups and pass out the student activity Climate Change Headlines. Have students identify different perspectives in the media on climate change and its impacts through analyzing point of view, context, and bias that they feel may or may not be found in the news first using headlines only. 

Sample Discussion Questions:

• What is bias? Do you think any of the headlines indicated bias? [Bias is a lack of balance]

• Do you think that there is potential bias in the news? Why or why not? [Yes, there can be bias in the news. For example, newspapers often endorse political candidates.]

• Do you think there would be more or less bias for a hot topic like climate change, or a topic like a museum opening? [A topic that can be politically charged, or met with skepticism, is more likely to have bias. Museum openings are usually undisputed, so there would likely be little bias surrounding the topic, while climate change can be met with bias.]

• Do you think you can tell always tell the main message of an article based on the headline alone? [The goal with a headline is to highlight the main message of an article, but headlines can be misleading.]

• From the headlines that you examined, do you think climate is represented in the news in Michigan? [Based on these headlines, climate change appears to be presented in a non-biased way in the news in Michigan papers. Many of the headlines seem to reflect evidence of climate change.]

4. Evaluate a Newspaper article(s).

Have students use the News Analysis student activity to summarize and evaluate at least one news article from a local or state newspaper, and one or more from a national news source (e.g., magazine, newspaper, TV). Use the Newspaper Research student activity (on the MEECS Climate Change Resource DVD) to help students find articles.