This story is part of Distorted, a Grist series exploring the spread of misinformation in the wake of extreme weather. It is published with support from the CO2 Foundation.
Trust in journalism and the media is at a record low for many Americans. Maybe yours is, too. Major media conglomerates are laying off local journalists and shuttering newspapers, people are getting more information from social media, and the number of partisan and opinion-based sources are growing.
Journalism is a public good, and at Grist we want our work to cut through bias to thoughtfully and accurately cover one of the most existential and politicized threats we all face: climate change.
Whether you read our stories all the time or are just finding out about us and aren’t sure how to wade into the climate conversation, we want you to know we are committed to making sure our work meets your criteria for confidence. Here are 10 reasons why you can trust us:
We’ve been at this a long time.
Grist launched in 1999 as a nonprofit, independent news site reporting on climate and environmental issues — totaling 27 years on this beat. Collectively, our reporters and editors have 150+ years’ experience covering climate change.
Our staff also brings a diverse set of expertise to this work: More than half of the people in our newsroom are trained scientists in fields like Earth and environmental science, atmospheric science, ecology, biology, neuroscience, chemistry, and engineering. Others come from backgrounds in public health, economics, political science, and art. All of this expertise helps us approach stories more thoughtfully and creatively.
We don’t parachute in.
Grist is headquartered in Seattle, but we have staff all over the country. Our 40 journalists are spread across more than 20 states, from Hawai‘i to Vermont, Illinois to Florida. With that geographic diversity comes deep regional and cultural expertise.
Grist has also ongoing partnerships with 11 newsrooms, spanning Utah to Nebraska to western North Carolina. That means we have reporters all across the country examining how climate and environmental issues impact the communities they live in — and this network is growing. You can read more about our Local News Initiative here.
While we will always be clear about the realities of human-caused climate change, we know there’s a lot of nuance involved in the conversation. We value having a diversity of opinions on how to best communicate about it and how to address it. Our sources and stories cross political lines, geographies, demographics, and ideologies. We always seek comment from all stakeholders involved in an issue, including corporations, elected officials, and affected community members. We believe in representing people and places fully, and treating them with fairness always.
We’re upfront about our funding.
As a nonprofit, Grist is not beholden to major advertisers or private investors to do our work. We have a diversified funding structure with support coming from individual donors (who give anywhere from a few dollars a year to hundreds or thousands), foundations, and advertisers/sponsors. We make public all donations totaling $5,000 or more per year and all advertising partnerships totaling $1,000 or more per year. You can see the full list here.
Our stories are edited and fact-checked.
Every piece of journalism published on Grist goes through a rigorous editing process, often with multiple rounds of revisions by multiple editors. We believe that accuracy, accessibility, and context are more important in journalism than speed. Grist reporters also fact-check their daily and weekly stories, and we leave room for this extra step in our editorial schedule.
Grist conducts thorough fact-checks on all major features and investigations. That means a journalist trained in fact-checking techniques and who was not involved in reporting the story combs through it to confirm every detail, including dates, proper names, titles, and statistics, and reviews interpretations of research, policy, and laws. We call sources or check interview transcripts to verify information attributed to people and double-check any data analysis. These stories are also reviewed by attorneys for any legal issues before publication.
We correct mistakes, and make public when we do.
Journalism is often referred to as the first draft of history — and like any draft, we are bound to make a few mistakes along the way. Grist is committed to fixing these inaccuracies and being transparent when we get it wrong. We include formal correction notes at the bottom of stories if anything has been changed or updated.
We cite our sources.
Grist is committed to sharing where we get our information. Our stories are riddled with hyperlinks that direct readers back to the original source our reporters used, such as government reports, public records, scientific studies, or datasets. Quotes and paraphrases are attributed to named experts, and we link to their biographies whenever possible. We never want readers to ask: “I wonder where they got that?”
Grist’s newsroom does not use generative AI to create articles or art, and will never publish AI-generated content under a human byline. Our internal newsroom policy stipulates that if AI is used to assist reporting — such as searching for sources or reviewing or synthesizing a new piece of legislation — it must undergo thorough human review and revision, and if AI is a substantive part of the reporting process (for example, AI-assisted data processing) its use must be disclosed.
We don’t publish op-eds.
Grist stopped publishing op-eds (a specific type of opinion piece where an author expresses their personal views) in 2022. Studies have shown that readers often struggle to understand the difference between reported, vetted journalism and op-eds — largely because media outlets fail to label them clearly enough — sowing a growing feeling that news outlets are partisan or biased. By eliminating op-eds, Grist readers get only deeply reported, context-rich reporting on climate change.
We don’t have a paywall.
Grist believes that independent journalism is critical for building an engaged, informed citizenry and maintaining a healthy democracy. That is why our content is never behind a paywall. We see our reporting as a public service — and as such, should be accessible by all.
We see collaboration as key to our success.
For many decades, journalism outlets only competed with one another. We believe in collaboration, which allows us to share resources and expertise and better reach and connect with readers. We do this not only with our Local News Initiative partners, but with a variety of newsrooms across the world. Some examples include co-publishing with The Miami Herald and Underscore Native News, which have specific audiences we wanted to reach, or investigating stories alongside El Paso Matters and the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo, where we brought science and policy expertise and they brought local knowledge and cultural context.
In addition, all of our reporting is free for other publications to republish. At a time when so many media organizations are laying off reporters or closing their environmental desks, this is critical to help fill the gaps. Last year, Grist’s journalism was published 7,600 times by nearly 1,000 news organizations.
We get communities the information they need in creative ways.
For decades, newspapers and magazines operated under the belief that if they simply published a story, their job was done. Information delivered. But with social media and AI growing and local news disappearing, huge swaths of people are not getting the careful and accurate journalism they deserve. Grist takes a more proactive approach. We believe we have a responsibility to ensure people have access to vital information and great storytelling — and that there are many forms that can take. From printed pamphlets and flyers distributed with community partners to journalism training programs and local events, we’re always learning and experimenting to figure out the best ways to reach people, get feedback, and build trust. You can learn more about our community engagement work here.
