Meteorologists under threat for climate change coverage - Indiatimes.com
Meteorologists under threat for climate change coverage | International - Times of India Videos
After 18 years doing the weather on TV stations across the country, a Des Moines, Iowa, meteorologist decided to quit.Chris Gloninger said he was recruited, in part, to “shake things up” at the Iowa TV station with his climate reporting. But backlash was building. He received a series of threatening emails from one man, later charged with third-degree harassment, who asked for his address. His station asked him to dial back his coverage, weighing its value against the pressure to maintain viewership and ratings.All told, along with the need to care for aging parents back in Boston, Chris Gloninger found himself questioning his work. He announced on June 21 that he was leaving KCCI — and his career in broadcast journalism altogether.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”