What if reporters covered the climate crisis like Edward R. Murrow covered the start of World War II?

In remarks delivered at the Covering Climate Now conference, Bill Moyers critiques the failure of major US news networks to adequately cover global warming and calls for a new era of courageous, connected reporting. He highlights a historical missed opportunity in 1965 when the US government first officially recognized the threat of CO2, and urges current journalists to act as a moral authority to shift public opinion and drive the 'acceptance of responsibility' needed to implement available climate solutions.

• Major US corporate broadcast networks have significantly reduced their coverage of climate change; combined coverage by the three major networks and Fox dropped 45 percent from 260 minutes in 2017 to 142 minutes in 2018.
• Local news availability in the United States has collapsed, with approximately 1,300 communities losing news coverage entirely due to closures and mergers, leaving many areas with 'ghost newspapers' unable to report on climate change.
• The US government had official scientific warnings about the threat of rising CO2 levels as early as 1965, with President Lyndon Johnson becoming the first president to mention the threat to Congress on November 6, 1965.
• The reporting of Edward R. Murrow and his team during the start of World War II demonstrates the power of journalism to shift public opinion; for example, US support for aid to Britain rose from 16 percent to 52 percent in one month as Murrow brought the reality of the Blitz into American homes.
• The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change established a critical window for action in October 2018, stating that massive changes are required to reduce global greenhouse-gas emissions by 45 percent below 2010 levels by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050.

APA

Moyers, B. (2019). What if reporters covered the climate crisis like Edward R. Murrow covered the start of World War II? Covering Climate Now. https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/what-if-reporters-covered-the-climate-crisis-like-edward-r-murrow-covered-the-start-of-world-war-ii/

Chicago

Moyers, Bill. What if reporters covered the climate crisis like Edward R. Murrow covered the start of World War II? Covering Climate Now, 2019. https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/what-if-reporters-covered-the-climate-crisis-like-edward-r-murrow-covered-the-start-of-world-war-ii/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Moyers |first1=Bill |title=What if reporters covered the climate crisis like Edward R. Murrow covered the start of World War II? |publisher=Covering Climate Now |date=23 May 2019 |url=https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/what-if-reporters-covered-the-climate-crisis-like-edward-r-murrow-covered-the-start-of-world-war-ii/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{moyers2019what, author = {Moyers, Bill}, title = {{What if reporters covered the climate crisis like Edward R. Murrow covered the start of World War II?}}, publisher = {Covering Climate Now}, year = {2019}, month = may, url = {https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/what-if-reporters-covered-the-climate-crisis-like-edward-r-murrow-covered-the-start-of-world-war-ii/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }