"Green Stories: The Environment and the Media"

The School of Journalism and Communication is planning the 2010 John L. Hulteng Conversations in Ethics: "Green Stories: The Environment and the Media,” a one-day conference on Friday, May 14, 2010 at the George S. Turnbull Center at the UO Portland.

The conference begins at 9:00 a.m. with "Puberty on the Scale of a Planet: Why Global Warming Isn't the Story of Our Time and What Really Is,” a keynote address by noted environmental writer Andrew Revkin. Revkin explores his learning curve after two decades of covering the growing human imprint on the planet and proposes that a great untold story — the halting coming of age of a species currently locked in a teen-style spree — lies beneath the headlines on climate.

Revkin’s keynote will be followed by three panel discussions: “Communicating Controversy: Reviving Nuclear Power in the Northwest,” chaired by Jon Palfreman, the SOJC’s KEZI Distinguished Professor of Broadcast Journalism; “Manifesting Green Values: Lessons from Brands Making a Difference,” chaired by Professor Kim Sheehan; and “Immersion Journalism: Environmental Storytelling from the Field,” chaired by Associate Professor Carol Ann Bassett. Panel participants include noted environmental journalists, researchers, and environmental leaders.

The 2010 Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism will also be awarded to Freelance writer Scott Carney and Wall Street Journal bureau chief Farnaz Fassihi at a special lunchtime ceremony during the Conversations in Ethics event.

“This year's event highlights the differing approaches media take when furthering the conversation about the environment,” says Tom Bivins, the SOJC’s John L. Hulteng Chair in Media Ethics. “These range from science reporting, to long-form journalism, to how business contributes to "green" awareness. The multiplicity of media voices brought together by the Hulteng Conversations in Ethics this year is bound to raise the discussion to a higher level.”

The John L. Hulteng Conversations in Ethics is an annual event made possible by the family of the late John Hulteng, former SOJC dean and professor, who set standards of journalism ethics that remain intact today. The event brings together students, professionals, and the public for an informed discussion of the ethical issues of the day as they pertain to the media and their constituencies.

For more information about Hulteng Conversations in Ethics, contact Zanne Miller, project manager, SOJC, zanne@uoregon.edu. To register, click here.