What makes a climate story cut through the noise?

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Puja Das

Energy & climate correspondent, Down To Earth

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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How storytelling choices influence reach, engagement and public understanding?

• Shapes how audiences connect with climate issues
• Human-centered stories increase relatability and attention
• Simple, clear narratives improve public understanding
• Emotional storytelling boosts engagement and sharing
• Local examples make global climate issues feel immediate
• Multimedia formats simplify complex science and data
• Social media expands reach to younger and wider audiences
• Long-form articles provide depth, accountability and context
• Visuals, maps and videos create stronger impact and recall
• Solution-oriented storytelling reduces climate fatigue and hopelessness
• Platform-specific storytelling improves visibility and effectiveness
• Strong storytelling builds trust, awareness and action

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Choosing the right medium

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Articles (print & web) : Depth, context and accountability

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Social Media: Speed, accessibility and wider reach

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Video & Multimedia: Emotional engagement and visual storytelling

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Podcasts: Nuanced conversations and explainers

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Why format matters?

• Climate stories compete with fast-moving news cycles

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• Audience attention spans vary across platforms

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• The right format shapes clarity, emotion and trust

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• Strong storytelling makes complex issues relatable

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Why format matters?

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Adapting stories across platforms

• A long-form investigation can become short reels, graphics and threads

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• Headlines and visuals should change for different audiences

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• Platform-specific storytelling increases impact and visibility

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Structuring Climate Stories

• Start with people and consequences

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• Use clear data and local examples

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• Balance urgency with solutions

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• Keep jargon minimal and storytelling human-centered

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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What Makes Climate Stories Cut Through

• Relevance + clarity + emotional connection + credibility

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• Stories succeed when audiences see how climate change affects their own lives

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Power of Multimedia

• Maps and data visualisations simplify complexity

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• Photos and videos create emotional resonance

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• Interactive storytelling increases audience participation

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• Audio-visual storytelling builds intimacy and trust

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Formats and Mediums in Climate Journalism

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Thank You