Telling Compelling Marine and Coastal Stories: Tips for Journalists, from Journalists
Channel: Earth Journalism Network
Date: 2023-02-27

Environmental journalism isn’t just regurgitating scientific studies or press releases. In fact, telling stories about the natural world and humanity’s place in it is a tough job to do well: A journalist must find the balance between relating factual information, often about very complex issues, in a way that an audience finds engaging. This is no less true in stories about marine and coastal issues, which journalists in Central America and the Caribbean are very familiar with. From explaining the importance of zooxanthellae for coral reefs to shedding light on an illegal waste dumping scheme along a beach, a coastal or marine story may touch on ecology, economics, politics, culture, and more. The task may seem overwhelming, but EJN grantees and environmental journalists Víctor Renné Rodríguez Sánchez and Isabel Alarcón have demonstrated how effectively these types of stories can be told with great success.

Watch this conversation with three Latin American journalists to learn how they have covered major marine and coastal issues and get some tips and tricks for your own reporting.

Speakers:
-Víctor Renné Rodríguez Sánchez, Mexican journalist
-Isabel Alarcón, Ecuadorian journalist

Moderator:
-Lucy Calderón, EJN's Latin America Stories Mentor