Reporting on Climate and the US 2024 Elections

The document advises journalists to treat climate change as a factual urgency rather than a partisan debate, urging them to proactively question candidates on specific plans for emissions reduction and infrastructure resilience. It highlights a disconnect between political discourse and public sentiment, noting that 62% of registered US voters prefer candidates who support climate action. The guide also provides a framework for debunking common climate myths and suggests local reporting angles such as the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act, green job programs, and climate-driven insurance rate increases.

• Public sentiment in the US shows a significant disconnect from political discourse, with 64% of Americans being at least "somewhat concerned" about climate change and 62% of registered voters preferring candidates who support actions to fight it.
• Journalists are encouraged to avoid asking candidates if they believe in climate change, as this implies the science is debatable; instead, they should ask for specific plans regarding carbon emissions, clean energy, and the Inflation Reduction Act.
• Climate disinformation has evolved from outright denial to narratives that question the severity of climate change and the efficacy of solutions like wind and solar energy, often funded by the oil and gas industry.
• The guide identifies three primary climate myths: the claim that scientists disagree (refuted by the fact that over 99% agree), the claim that human activity is not the cause (refuted by the parallel between CO2 levels and temperature rise), and the claim that current climate change is normal (refuted by the unprecedented rate of carbon release).

APA

CCNow (2024). Reporting on Climate and the US 2024 Elections. Covering Climate Now. https://coveringclimatenow.org/resource/reporting-on-climate-and-the-us-2024-elections/

Chicago

CCNow. Reporting on Climate and the US 2024 Elections. Covering Climate Now, 2024. https://coveringclimatenow.org/resource/reporting-on-climate-and-the-us-2024-elections/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=CCNow |title=Reporting on Climate and the US 2024 Elections |publisher=Covering Climate Now |date=10 April 2024 |url=https://coveringclimatenow.org/resource/reporting-on-climate-and-the-us-2024-elections/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ccnow2024reporting, author = {CCNow}, title = {{Reporting on Climate and the US 2024 Elections}}, institution = {Covering Climate Now}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://coveringclimatenow.org/resource/reporting-on-climate-and-the-us-2024-elections/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }