The USC Center for Climate Journalism and Communication held an event Thursday to discuss environmental challenges in Los Angeles and the world. Temperature Check gathered local environmental journalists, and most notably actress and climate activist Jane Fonda.
Fonda kicked off the event for the first hour with Annenberg School of Journalism and Communication Dean Willow Bay. Fonda talked about what sparked her desire for environmental activism, saying her goal was not only to help restore a world she cares about but also to inspire other older women as well as the younger generations.
The actress also revealed that most of her desire for environmental protection began when she was younger and moved back to California.
“It was a glorious sun. Every day, I heard songbirds and you know, I knew all kinds of animals and I was in the ocean every day during summer,” Fonda said. “I didn’t come back to California until quite a bit later.
“There were freeways, there was smog and my eyes burned,” she continued. “And I couldn’t understand how people who lived in California weren’t bothered by what they seem to take for granted.”
Fonda also touched on present issues surrounding the usage of fossil fuels, corporations, President Joe Biden’s involvement with environmental justice and how the current conflict in Gaza has affected the environment.
Touching all of these issues, Fonda told the audience, was environmental journalism and making sure the public was informed.
Fonda said she wanted to ensure that future generations of journalists would stay true to their beliefs and hold people accountable for protecting their planet.
There were a few moments of tension during the discussion that drew a reaction from the audience, as Fonda made comments on Annenberg’s funding and Dean Bay’s marriage to Disney’s CEO.
“You know, one of the big problems with journalism schools is that there’s this toxic relationship between journalism and corporations, because often corporations fund journalism school,” Fonda said. “This probably is too, right. No? OK, good. But very often, they’re funded by corporations.”
Temperature Check also featured a panel of experts who spoke after Fonda.
Sammy Roth, a climate columnist at the L.A. Times and Allison Agsten, director of the USC Center for Climate Journalism and Communication took to the stage for a conversation moderated by L.A. Times reporter Faith Pinho.
They shared similar sentiments to Fonda, and encouraged and coming journalists to write about environmental issues and drive home why the climate is so important.
“Imagine if we didn’t know that burning fossil fuels was killing us,” Agsten said. “Somebody has to tell that story.
“So we have to tell that story convincingly with all the facts in place, but also in a way that really moves people to listen,” she said. “We also have to talk about those innovations so that people want to adopt them. The storytelling is not just important, it’s in fact, essential.”
The event was well attended, with both students and local residents coming to see Fonda.
“I think what I found the best part of it was how positive she is, it made me feel a little bit less cynical, because you know, she’s 86, and I’m 24,” Sofia Anguita, a new admit to USC, said. “So it’s like, I should be a little bit more positive and hopeful and wanting to take more action.”
CORRECTION: This story has been updated to clarify that although KCRW Reporter Caleigh Wells was listed on the Temperature Check program, she did not attend the event.