We are pleased to present a new series about how Columbia Journalism School has been training its students to become leading climate change reporters. With changes in the climate endangering lives, ecologies, and economies at global and local levels, the work of journalists is vital for effectively and accurately explaining the science and implications of climate change to the public. In this class spotlight, we look at the Master of Science Program course "Storytelling About the Environment." The class offers Columbia students the opportunity to gain extensive knowledge about environmental and climate change reporting while they also learn state-of-the-art documentary filmmaking skills.
Team taught by Marguerite Holloway (M.S. '88), Associate Professor of Professional Practice and Director of the Master of Arts Program's Science Concentration, and Duy Linh Tu (M.S. '99), Professor of Journalism, "Storytelling About the Environment" teaches students how to create documentary stories about one of the most exciting and wide-ranging areas of coverage: science and the environment.
With acclaimed science journalist Marguerite Holloway as a guide, students in "Storytelling About the Environment" first learn how to report on and think critically about the many facets of this complex beat, which includes disciplines from ecology to public health. Through extensive reading as well as visits with science journalists and researchers studying issues such as climate change, students will learn how to identify and write compelling stories about science.
With documentary filmmaker Duy Linh Tu as a guide, the students then learn how to turn the stories they have written and the issues they have explored into short documentary films. Students learn advanced principles of field production, as well as sophisticated post-production techniques. The course teaches students shooting techniques, proper audio recording, and narrative storytelling skills.
In the video below, Professor Tu discusses why he co-teaches the class. "You have to make a film about something that matters and, right now, one of the most important topics in my mind is the environment, climate change, science," he explains.
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