Bill Moyers helped break the media's climate silence

The document commemorates Bill Moyers, highlighting his instrumental role in launching Covering Climate Now in 2019 to break the 'climate silence' in news media. It notes his contributions in providing a keynote speech at the Columbia School of Journalism and helping raise the initial $1 million in philanthropic support. The text describes how CCNow's early efforts, combined with global mobilizations like those led by Greta Thunberg, helped shift political and media priorities toward climate change.

• Bill Moyers was a foundational figure for Covering Climate Now (CCNow), providing the keynote speech at the Columbia School of Journalism in April 2019 that helped launch the initiative. He argued that journalists must cover the climate crisis "as if life on earth depends on it, which it does."
• Moyers played a critical role in the financial viability of CCNow by helping to secure the first $1 million in philanthropic funding.
• By September 2019, CCNow had coordinated 323 news organizations globally for a week of dedicated climate reporting. This effort, coinciding with global protests inspired by Greta Thunberg, contributed to a shift where government and media leaders recognized the public importance of climate change.

APA

Pope, M. H. A. K. (2025). Bill Moyers helped break the media's climate silence. Covering Climate Now. https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/bill-moyers-helped-break-the-medias-climate-silence/

Chicago

Pope, Mark Hertsgaard and Kyle. Bill Moyers helped break the media's climate silence. Covering Climate Now, 2025. https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/bill-moyers-helped-break-the-medias-climate-silence/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Pope |first1=Mark Hertsgaard and Kyle |title=Bill Moyers helped break the media's climate silence |publisher=Covering Climate Now |date=30 June 2025 |url=https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/bill-moyers-helped-break-the-medias-climate-silence/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{pope2025bill, author = {Pope, Mark Hertsgaard and Kyle}, title = {{Bill Moyers helped break the media's climate silence}}, publisher = {Covering Climate Now}, year = {2025}, month = jun, url = {https://coveringclimatenow.org/from-us-story/bill-moyers-helped-break-the-medias-climate-silence/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }