From frog fungus to smashed dams; Maine science journalism and the (messed-up) food chain of news

Maine is fertile ground for environmental journalists. It’s got marine waters, estuaries and rivers, great ponds and little bogs, rugged peaks and thousands of miles of woodlands. All of these become controversial from time to time, with conflicts over everything from dams and wind turbines to clearcutting, wetlands and shoreland zoning. If that’s not enough, Maine has dozens of top-notch scientists conducting environmental research. So there are lots of stories to be told. But what makes a good news story for a general audience? When is the best time to tell it? And how best to report it? This seminar will discuss these questions, using examples from Maine.

Murray Carpenter has been covering science and environmental stories in Maine for 20 years. He has worked as a reporter for Maine Public Radio, Maine Times, and The Republican Journal. As a freelancer, he has reported for the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and the Bangor Daily News; and Wired, National Geographic and Audubon magazines. His radio stories have aired on NPR, PRI’s The World, and Living on Earth. For three years, he published and edited the regional monthly Northern Sky News. His book Caffeinated, How Our Daily Habit Helps, Hooks and Hurts Us was published by Penguin USA in 2014. He holds a degree in psychology from the University of Colorado and an MS in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana, and lives in Belfast.