Pacific Journalists trained on climate reporting and AI at AIBD

CNN Indonesia climate journalist Dewi Safiritni says climate change is the biggest threat to humanity (NBC News: Solomon Sumb)

Climate change is the biggest threat to humanity at the moment, and especially for small island developing states, where it is a threat to daily life.

That was the message delivered by CNN Indonesia climate journalist Dewi Safiritni, who led a session on climate change reporting during a media training workshop underway at the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development [AIBD] in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

"We basically live in fear, from cyclone to cyclone, flood to flood, sea level rise, landslides, and droughts. We live in fear of losing crops, losing our habitats, and losing lives," Ms Safiritni said.

Safiritni said for journalists and the media, it is really important to get this right to report with a clear understanding of what is true and what reliable sources say when it comes to scientific facts.

"This is crucial to fighting misinformation, disinformation, and hoaxes around climate change."

She added that what this training is conducted is basically to try to establish that and explore how technology can help with climate reporting.

"We looked at some of the most advanced AI tools available free on the Internet, hoping these can simplify the task of reporting on climate issues."

Participants (From L-R) Timothy Makekon from Vanuatu Broadcasting Television Corporation, Lesley Kili and Lydia Moia of National Broadcasting Corporation of Papua New Guinea attending the workshop on climate reporting in Malaysia (NBC News: Solomom Sumb)

Meanwhile, today's session will shift to focus on misinformation, disinformation, and hoaxes, how to detect them, and what narratives journalists can use to counter them.

"We also plan to strengthen our understanding of scientific reporting.

"Climate change is fundamentally a scientific concept, and to present it in ways our audience can understand, we need to understand it ourselves.

"That means learning how to read and interpret scientific papers and discussions around climate science." she added.

NBC online reporter, Solomon Sumb in Malaysia (NBC News)

Journalists and content creators from the National Broadcasting Corporation and Vanuatu are undertaking the training on climate change reporting and the use of artificial intelligence [AI] at the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development [AIBD] center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.