Environmental Journalism

J440 SYLLABUS SPRING 2013 1|P age

Journalism 440 – Environmental Journalism
Spring Semester, 2013

Instructor: Larry Pryor, Associate Professor
Office: ASC 327E
E-mail: lpryor@usc.edu
Phones: Office 213-740-9083 (during office hours); Home 818-952-7223;
Cell 818-590-6546
Office Hours: Wednesdays, 11 a.m.-11:30, 1:30-3 p.m.; Thursdays, 1-2 p.m., after class,
and by appointment on Mondays.
Home Address:
1033 Vista del Valle
La Cañada, Calif. 91011

COURSE INFORMATION

4 Units
Section 21298D, Thursday, 2 p.m. to 5:20 p.m., Room ASC 225

COURSE IMPORTANCE, OBJECTIVES AND DESCRIPTION

When newspapers downsized, the first people to be let go were the specialists on science,
medicine and the environment. Coverage of these topics at major papers – notably The New
York Times, Los Angeles Times, Financial Times and The Guardian – has remained strong.
Much of the specialist coverage has shifted to public radio and the Internet. Writers who
understand how to cover specialized beats are beginning to thrive on these new platforms.

Moreover, the demand for reliable information on the state of the environment has never
been greater. Scientists warn that time is running out on global society’s ability to deal with
potentially catastrophic threats. Human-induced damage to ecosystems may become irreversible,
unless changes are made to social, political and economic policies at all levels of global society.
Journalists will have to provide citizens with the context and information necessary for rational
decision-making. The public needs the context of natural phenomena to assess risks and judge
probabilities. Philosophers tell us: from knowledge comes the wisdom to act ethically.

Government paralysis on ecological threats raises serious moral issues, especially as
damage costs are being shifted to the minority and disadvantaged communities, developing
countries and future generations. The major industrial nations above the equator bear
responsibility for the greenhouse gases they have been emitted since the start of the Industrial
Revolution. Unequal wealth distribution leads to many unwise and despotic decisions.
Developing nations tolerate unhealthy, chaotic cities; destroy forests; and build dams or compete
for scarce water and power sources. Unregulated mining and industrial processes in many
undeveloped parts of the world weaken public health and destroy ecological systems that


societies depend on for survival. Wealthy elites isolate themselves from the damage and continue
to prosper through globalization. To use today’s buzzword, the results are unsustainable.

Learning Objectives:

This course is designed to heighten your understanding of environmental topics and
strengthen your core competencies in these areas:

Determining what sources and information outlets can be trusted to shed light on
controversial and uncertain claims.
Gaining an understanding of key ecological issues to enable you to find information and
interview sources productively.
Understanding what makes a good story and being able to pitch it to an editor or
producer.
Employing journalism skills to tell stories on multiple platforms and engage with the
public.

Course Description:

Our discussions, readings and reporting will be done mainly in the context of the western
U.S., Southern California and Los Angeles County. This region is a living laboratory in which to
find environmental trends that seriously impact people’s lives. It is also a region rich in
innovation and accepting of long-term societal solutions. California is recognized as a world
leader in environmental science and policy, and we will evaluate the state’s long history of
ecological awareness.

Much of class time will be devoted to discussion of the designated topic of the week. I
will also lecture (briefly) and make use of sources and visual content on the Internet. At all times
in class, you should be ready to contribute ideas, critiques, links and insights from your own
experience and from the assigned readings. Participation is crucial to gaining benefits from this
class. At times, I will invite guests to talk with us about a topic in the syllabus. Be prepared to
ask questions and to challenge them. (I will provide advance notice.)

The Los Angeles River will serve as our laboratory. It spans both the natural and urban
worlds and offers many examples of chaotic and stressed ecological systems. When we look at
Southern California and the L.A. River, we can see how wide the knowledge base must be for an
environment writer to capture such complexity. To prove this, we will take a field trip along the
river and discuss what we find. You may want to do one of your assignments on some aspect of
the river. Visit the river yourselves or participate in one of the events sponsored by Friends of the
River. ( folar.org/The Web site has a map that shows the location of Folar’s offices. Stop by and
talk with the staff and pick up materials on the river and its fascinating history.)


READINGS

Required:

Larry Pryor, “Slow Fuse; Journalistic Approaches to Climate Change,” The Aspen
Institute, 2006
National Research Council, “Climate Change; Evidence, Impacts and Choices,” 2012

(I will provide copies of both of these readings. They will be discussed later in the semester, but
you should read them early in the semester.)

The Course Calendar lists readings that will be required the following week.

Suggested Reading:

Links to videos that relate to particular classes will be posted on Blackboard. I urge you
to look at them. I will post links on Blackboard to timely news stories on environmental topics or
scientific studies. I will alert you by email, and we will discuss them in class.

You should be looking for environmental news on the Web. Twitter is an excellent way
to flag hot stories or controversies. I will post a list of environmental news sources on
Blackboard. We will have a Tumblr page where we can put alerts to topics and provide links.
Please bookmark that site and contribute to it, as well as read what others in the class have
contributed.

I will also post on Blackboard a bibliography of book titles and links to Web sites, email
newsletters and academic papers that can be accessed online. Some links will be to archived
news stories that are noteworthy, including several that have won awards such as the Pulitzer
Prize.
.
I can loan you books on a wide variety of environmental topics. Just ask. Or I can put
some on reserve at Leavey Library. I also recommend this text as a great overview of the growth
of cities and the impacts of civilization on nature:

Boone, Christopher G. & Ali Modarres, “City and Environment,” Temple University
Press, 2006 ISBN 1-59213-284-7 (Used copies of this book should be available at the
bookstore and are also for sale at Amazon quite cheaply.)

ATTENDANCE AND CLASS REQUIREMENTS

Class attendance is vital. If you miss classes, it will be difficult to keep up and your
grades will suffer. Please alert me by email or by home phone or my cell, if you must be absent.
Leave a message, if necessary. Only religious holidays and medical and family emergencies can
be used as valid excuses.


You will be given three assignments this semester. The first will be a news story, the
second a multimedia team project and the last a project of extended scope, which will be in place
of the final exam.

One student each week, starting in Week Three, will be assigned to select an
environmental story from print or online and summarize the substance of the news report.
Analysis should include discussion of structure, strengths, shortcomings and strategies the writer
used to draw in and hold readers. What sources did the reporter use? Were key points supported
by data? We will critique these stories and see if they hold up.

I realize that many of the topics we will encounter this semester may be unfamiliar to
you. It could be difficult to come up with story topics, particularly for the first assignment. I will
put a list of possible topics up on Blackboard, ones that as your editor I would like to see covered
this semester. You may pick one or pitch your own story idea, perhaps one that was triggered by
one of mine but takes a new direction. Before you work on a story project, however, you must
first clear it with me by submitting a story pitch.

The first story assignment is a news story on some environmental topic or trend. It should be
750 to 1,250 words. The second story is a multimedia team project, also on a topic or trend
dealing with some aspect of the environment. I will choose the teams. (More details below.)

The Final Project, which is worth 40 percent of your grade this semester, is due May 9,
the day of the final exam scheduled for our class. Consider it a capstone project. It should be a
feature story, profile or in-depth report dealing with an environmental topic. The length should
be at least 2,000 words. Extra credit will be given for multimedia elements, such as photos,
video, charts and tables.
.
You must meet deadlines. Late assignments will get an “F.” (No exceptions.)

AP Style will prevail in all our work, including in charts, graphs, cutlines and text blocks.
Story formats will be the same as in writing courses at Annenberg – double-spaced, normal
margins, your name and story slug at the top left. Page numbers should be in the header at the
top on each succeeding page. Stories should be emailed to me before or at the time they are due.
We will use email for immediate communication. (Please put J440 CLASS in the subject
line to make it more identifiable.) I hope you will see me during office hours or talk with me
about any questions or problems before or after class. I will also schedule brief visits during class
hours with each of you after Spring Break.

I will create a Tumblr Web site for the class. You are encouraged to either post your class
work there or submit it to Neon Tommy for publication. You should feel inspired to post
additional comments, links, photos and videos on Tumblr as the semester progresses.

GRADING


Accuracy, thoroughness and fairness will be the standard for all of your work. I will also
consider the creativity, originality and freshness that you bring to your assignments and
presentations.

An “A” means that you have done professional, publishable work. “B” grades indicate
the work is acceptable but needs some revision. Grades below that say your work is not
acceptable and must be totally redone to receive a better grade. You will have to consult with
me, if that is the case. I can revise a low grade if you rework an assignment in some cases. In
others, it may be best to move on and concentrate on the next assignment.

The multimedia team project will be graded collectively; each team gets one grade. Both
this assignment and the final project will be evaluated on the following criteria:

1) Original perspective. No matter what form a project takes, it should convey an
angle or perspective that offers an original take on a concept or theme.

2) Depth of research. Content is crucial. Projects must contain source materials
that accurately and thoroughly document the issue you have chosen to address.
Have you covered the most important or central elements of the topic? Have
you drawn on a broad array of reliable sources? Have you documented them
appropriately?

3) Clarity, accuracy and style. You have numerous multimedia tools at your
disposal. Use them to help craft a narrative or convey the central idea of your
project in a clear and thought-provoking manner. Spelling, style, grammar and
organization all contribute to clarity and accuracy.

The final project is primarily a text story, but you should include multimedia elements,
such as photos, maps, charts or video, and they can count against the recommended length of the
text. (i.e. A good chart can substitute for 50 words. This will be negotiable.) I am expecting your
story to be thorough and informative, ready for publication.

Assignments and Their Grade Values

Final grades will be calculated according to this formula:

First Story 20%
Multimedia Team Project 20
Class Participation 10
Presentation of Final Project in Class 10
Final Project 40

TOTAL: 100%


PLAGIARISM AND JOURNALISTIC INTEGRITY

Plagiarism is defined as taking ideas or writings from another and passing them off as one’s own.
This is not only about copying sentences and phrases, but also about slightly altering a few
words. In journalism, plagiarism includes appropriating the reporting of another without clear
attribution. This is theft, but it’s also a lie, since you are representing to the reader that you and
your news organization have verified the facts when you have not.

Fabrication of content for stories, such as making up sources, quotes and facts, must be avoided
at all costs. Sooner or later, it catches up to you. (If you haven’t seen it, rent “Shattered Glass.”)

ANNENBERGSCHOOL OF JOURNALISM ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY

Since its founding, the USC Annenberg School of Journalism has maintained a
commitment to the highest standards of ethical conduct and academic excellence.

Any student found guilty of plagiarism, fabrication, cheating on examinations or
purchasing papers or other assignments will immediately receive a failing grade in
the course and will be dismissed as a major from the School of Journalism.
There are no exceptions to this policy.

USC STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic
honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of others, the
expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an
instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by
others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected to
understand and abide by these principles. Scampus, the Student Guidebook, contains the
Student Conduct Code in Section 11.00, while the recommended sanctions are located in
Appendix A. Students will be referred to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and
Community Standards for further review, should there be any suspicion of academic
dishonesty.

INSTRUCTOR’S BIOGRAPHY

I have a background as a reporter, writer, editor and photographer, first at the Louisville
Courier-Journal and later at the Los Angeles Times. At those publications, I covered the
environment and became an assistant metropolitan editor at the LAT with responsibility fortopics
involving science, medicine, urban affairs and the environment. Then I knocked around in
politics – a press secretary in a presidential campaign with Gov. Jerry Brown – and published a
pot-boiler novel. I went back to the LAT and got involved in new media there in the 1980s, as
digital technology was getting off the ground. I ended up being editor of latimes.com, before
moving to USC in 1997 to head the Online Journalism and Communications Program at the
AnnenbergSchool. I have since returned to concentrating on environmental journalism. In
addition to teaching, I am researching topics associated with climate change and how they affect


public discourse and block or encourage solutions to global warming.

INTERNSHIPS

The value of professional internships as part of the overall educational experience of our students
has long been recognized by the School of Journalism. Accordingly, while internships are not
required for successful completion of this course, any student enrolled in this course who
undertakes and completes an approved, non-paid internship during this semester shall earn
academic extra credit herein of an amount equal to one percent of the total available semester
points for this course.

To receive instructor approval, a student must request an internship letter from the Annenberg Career
Development Office and bring it to the instructor to sign by the end of the third week of classes. The
student must submit the signed letter to the media organization, along with the evaluation form provided
by the Career Development Office. The form should be filled out by the intern supervisor and returned to
the instructor at the end of the semester. No credit will be given if an evaluation form is not turned in to
the instructor by the last day of class.

Note: The internship must be unpaid and can only be applied to one journalism class.

DISABILITY SERVICES AND PROGRAMS

Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register
with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for
approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to
me as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301. Its phone number is 213-
740-0776.

CLASS SCHEDULE
Note: This schedule is subject to change. Readings listed each week should be read before the
next class. Other readings and videos are available to you by topic category at Blackboard.

Readings for Week One:

The following readings need to be done before class on January 17. I will email these links to
you and post them on Blackboard.

“The Carson Effect; How Silent Spring shaped (and still shapes) modern environmentalism,”
William Souder, SEJournal Summer/Fall, 2012
http://www.sej.org/publications/sejournal-su-fall12/carson-effect

“Fifty Years After Silent Spring, Assault on Science Continues,” Frank Graham Jr., Yale
Environment360, June 21, 2012
http://e360.yale.edu/feature/fifty_years_after_rachel_carsons_silent_spring_assacult_on_science
_continues/2544/


“The Wild Life of Silent Spring; How Rachel Carson gave voice to the modern environmental
movement and ignited its opposition,” Eliza Griswold, The New York Times Magazine,
September 23, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/23/magazine/how-silent-spring-ignited-the-environmental-
movement.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

WEEK 1: Jan. 17

Class Topic: Introduction to Environmental Journalism

How much do you already know about the environment? Let’s find a starting point appropriate
to the class. We will go over the syllabus and talk about the semester ahead. I will describe the
environment beat and its special problems. Class discussion will focus on Rachel Carson and
what has taken place in the 50 years since the publication of Silent Spring.

Readings:

“What's at Risk from Industry's Full-Scale Assault on the EPA and the Clean Air Act?Public
Health Protections Under Attack,” Natural Resources Defense Council
http://www.nrdc.org/air/cleanairact/default2.asp

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Air Quality Planning and Standards
http://www.epa.gov/oaqps001/cleanair.html

California Air Resources Board; Reducing Air Pollution - ARB Programs
http://www.arb.ca.gov/html/programs.htm
(Read the Major Program Areas, open up some of the Related Email Lists and look at some of
the Contact lists. This is a great place to locate sources.)

“How Los Angeles Began to Put its Smoggy Days Behind,” Jeremy Rosenberg,
KCET, February 13, 2012
http://www.kcet.org/socal/departures/landofsunshine/laws-that-shaped-la/how-los-angeles-
began-to-put-its-smoggy-days-behind.html

WEEK 2: Jan. 24
(A written story pitch for Assignment #1 is due next week)

[Note: After today’s class, an event, ClimatePalooza, sponsored by Annenberg’s Earth Sciences
Communication Initiative, in partnership with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will be held at our
school. It will have a unique format, and you will be able to hear from and talk with scientists
about environmental issues. The event starts at 5:30 in the auditorium. Tell your friends!]

Class Topic: Air


Air pollution remains a serious health threat in almost every city worldwide, including those in
Southern California. The health impacts can be severe, especially from the exposure of children
to ozone and particulates. The U.S. has made progress in cleaning the air, thanks to the 1970
federal Clean Air Act. But in Southern California, damaging pollutants from power plants,
refineries, diesel vehicles and ocean-going ships, much less commuter traffic, continue to
contribute to asthma, heart attacks and lung cancer. We will discuss why that is so and what is
being done about it. This is an essential element of environmental journalism.

Readings:

“Reporting On Water: U.S. and International Coverage; Introduction,” Melissa Ludtke, Editor.
Nieman Reports, Spring 2005
http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/reports/article/101017/Introduction.aspx
(Also, check out the stories on the left side of the page. You don’t have to read (many) of them
but be aware that this trove of good advice is there.)

Op-Ed, Jim Newton: “Water ethics and a peripheral canal; Southern California needs the water,
and Northern California has it,” Los Angeles Times,June 25, 2012

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/25/opinion/la-oe-newton-
column-peripheral-canal-brown-20120625
“Water War Resurges,” Louis Sahagun, Los Angeles Times, June 10, 2012
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/10/local/la-me-owens-dust-20120610

“Getting into the (Clean Water) Act; As key statute hits 40, how to tell the story of its successes,
failures” Robert McClure, SEJournal, Spring 2012
www.sej.org/publications/sejournal-sp12/getting-clean-water-act

“Hot Issues,” California Water Resources Board
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/hot_topics/index.shtml

(Open some of the topics listed, investigate this Web site. It has many places where you can
locate good source.)

WEEK 3: Jan. 31
(A written story pitch for Assignment #1 is due)

Class Topic: Water

Scarce water resources and increased contamination of waterways are considered by many
experts to be the most serious immediate ecological threat worldwide. Violent disputes over
water, once a thing of the past, have resurfaced in many parts of the world. Intelligence agencies
predict competition for this resource will lead to regional wars. California faces severe shortages,

J440 SYLLABUS SPRING 2013 10 | P a g e

particularly as global warming kicks in. Water topics are difficult to bring alive in a news story.
We’ll discuss how it can be done and look at some examples.

Readings:

“Could This Election Kill Monsanto’s Mutant Seed?” Mother Jones, November/December, 2012
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2012/10/california-prop-37-monsanto-gmo-labeling

“The Fast-Food Ethicist.” Joel Stein, Time, July 23, 2012
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2119329,00.html

“Heavenly Earth; California’s Central Valley is our greatest food resource. So why are we
treating it so badly?” Mark Bittman, The New York Times Magazine, October 14, 2012
http://byliner.com/mark-bittman/stories/everyone-eats-there

“Tackling America’s Eating Habits, One Store at a Time,” Jennifer Couzin-Frankel, Science, Vol
337, pgs. 1473-1475) September 2012 (This is available through the USC Library)

WEEK 4: Feb. 7

Class Topic: Food

With a projected world population increase from 6.8 billion to at least 9 billion by 2050, food
issues loom large. Already, crop losses to drought, competition for scarce arable land and
unsustainable corporate farming practices all represent threats to adequate food supplies. Prices
of commodities have been escalating, which causes severe hardship for people already living on
the margin. Civil unrest can be a result. We will discuss the wide range of food topics. It can be a
subspecialized career of its own in journalism.

Readings:TBA

WEEK 5: Feb. 14
(Assignment #1 is due)

Class Topic: Energy

Energy enables civilization. Unfortunately, the cheapest and most available fuels – wood, coal
and oil -- are also the dirtiest and most damaging. Global demand for inexpensive energy will be
great, considering that 1.4 billion people are still without access to reliable electrical power.
Alternative fuels will have to be deployed if greenhouse gases are to be controlled. In addition,
some 2.7 billion people depend on biomass stoves for cooking and eating and up to 2 million
people per year, mostly women and children,die from toxic fumes from such stoves. We will not
be short of material to discuss and story ideas. This is also a writing career by itself.

Readings:TBA


WEEK 6: Feb. 21

Class Topic: Waste
Our modern lifestyle and devotion to consumption leads to unprecedented waste. We will survey
its many forms from sewage to municipal landfills and counter movements such as recycling,
reusable market bags and reduced packaging materials. Nuclear waste and coal ash present
difficult problems. Industrial processes use a small percentage of heat generated. Food spoilage
is a global problem. The list goes on. We will look at solutions, from heat capture and reuse to
composting and biological controls. If you ignore the yuck factor, waste is a great area for
important, interesting stories.

Readings:TBA

WEEK 7: Feb 28
(Written pitch for Assignment #2 is due March 7)

Class Topic: Health, Open Space and Megacities

As the global population grows and more millions of people continue to migrate to cities, public
health risks escalate. Issues such as diet and exercise are being linked to the need for open space,
well-designed neighborhoods that accommodate pedestrians and bike riders. Issues range widely,
from marijuana regulation to urban noise and the stress people in developing countries endure
from adapting to Western culture. Cities with parks that provide contact with nature and wildlife
rank higher on satisfaction and health. Commute-weary people in the U.S. are moving to urban
core areas where they increasingly enjoy healthy foods, convenient services, public transit and
safety from violence. This topic is more Urban Affairs than Environment; the two beats overlap.

Readings:TBA

WEEK 8: March 7
(Written pitch for Assignment #2 is due)

Class Topic: Climate Change

This is the paradigmatic environmental issue, a classic “wicked problem,” a category of public
policy concerns that defies rational and optimal solutions. We will review the science of
anthropomorphic global warming; the facts are now beyond dispute, except for skeptics who
have not fully followed the issues and deniers, many of whom deliberately poison public
discourse. Since it is our consumption of carbon that contributes to warming, we all have a moral
obligation to protect ecosystems and stop passing costs and risks to future generations. This is
the area I specialize in. It is another subtopic worthy of a career.

Readings: TBA


WEEK 9: March 14
(Story Assignment #2 is due the week after Spring Break! Also, begin working on a story pitch
for your final story)

Class Topics: The Oceans

Topics about the oceans fall into two categories. One has little to do with climate change but a
lot to do with overfishing, damaging practices such as shark “finning,” destruction of breeding
grounds, such as mangroves and estuaries, and widespread pollution from urban runoff and
industrial processes. The second category relates to climate and involves acidification as the
oceans absorb carbon, sea level rise from melting of ice in the arctic regions and the possibility
of major shifts in ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream. This is another megatopic and a source
of many prize-winning stories.

Readings: TBA

Spring Recess! (No Class March 21)
WEEK 10: March 28
(Story Assignment #2 is due; written pitch on final project is due next week)

Class Topic: Floods, Drought, Heat, Wildfires, Extreme Weather

Scientists have been reluctant to ascribe weather abnormalities to climate change. But more
frequent occurrences and the escalating damage from events such as Superstorm Sandy, the
Colorado fires, costly droughts and lethal heat waves are now so prominent that climate experts
are coming closer to reaching a consensus that global warming is indeed the villain. We will look
at all sides of this issue and decide for ourselves. We will also discuss risk assessment and
adaptation strategies and how to write about them accurately.

Readings:

I will post links and written materials about the Los Angeles River on Blackboard.

WEEK 11: April 4
(Written pitch on your final project is due.)

Field Trip to the Los Angeles River (2-5:20 p.m.)
Topic for the tour: Greenbelts and combined uses of land for recreation, wildlife and sewage
disposal. Other topics: Bike paths, urban fishing. bird watching. This is a chance to observe the
connections between the urban and natural environments.

Readings: TBA


WEEK 12: April 11

Class Topic: California and the Environment

No state has taken a more aggressive role in protecting the environment than California. From
the early conservationists such as John Muir and the formation of the Sierra Club to the
successful battles with the auto industry over vehicle smog controls and, most recently, adoption
of a cap-and-trade system to regulate industrial polluters, the state has led the way nationally, if
not globally. We will look at why that is so and whether the state is harming its economy. (Note:
Time will be set aside for 5-minute tag-team meetings with me in my office.)

WEEK 13: April 18

Class Topic: Public Morality, Values and Corruption

Social scientists, philosophers and public policy experts appear to be reaching an agreement that
most of the actions that are harmful to the environment and threaten a global ecological collapse
can be traced to a crisis in public morality. They are increasingly critical of traditional
economists, who maintain a faith in market solutions and cost-benefit analysis. They ascribe
political stagnation to public corruption. They believe that a return to civil discourse, responsible
citizenship and a rejection of both materialism and utilitarianism are essential if a global
catastrophe is to be avoided this century. We will discuss the values and principles philosophers
say are essential to our survival. This may be the most difficult domain to communicate to the
public.

WEEK 14: April 25
(A draft of you final project is due next week.)

Class Topic:Ecological Stress and Ways to Preserve the Planet

Many of the topics we will be dealing with this semester are seemingly hopeless – complex
problems that defy solutions. Therefore, it’s important that we look carefully at threats society
faces today and find ways to build public support for the possibly radical steps that are needed to
address global warming and global ecological decline. In previous history, major and even
minor wholesale changes in public opinion, from abolishing slavery to curbing drunk driving and
controlling tobacco use, have been accomplished in relatively short time periods. What will it
take to bring out the best in us, to get global agreement on “doing the right thing” when it comes
to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and protecting vital ecological systems? What is the role
of journalism and communication in helping to make that happen?

WEEK 15: May 2
(Draft of final project is due)

Class Topics: Presentation of Final Projects


Much of the last class will be devoted to talking about your work, showing what you have
accomplished and critiquing the work of other class members. What have we learned? Where do
we go from here? How do we wish to lead our lives? Can we help others find truth?

FINAL EXAM

Finish the Final Project

It is due on the scheduled day of the Final Exam: May 9, at 2 p.m.(It may be e-mailed by that
time, delivered to the ASC mail room and given a time stamp that would be before 2 p.m.)

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