Reporter and writer. I cover energy, climate change and geopolitics. Contact me via my website www.alexanderckaufman.com and subscribe to kaufman.substack.com.

I’ll be curious to see that evolve. Definitely a daunting task to make the boogeyman into a hero, but if the facts bare it out it should be possible. 

Do you think journalism plays a big role in that since it’s largely a public trust issue? Is that complicated by the public trust issues journalists face now (fairly or unfairly)?

Definitely! There’s still lots of badly misinformed reporting from otherwise good media outlets. 

For example, decent reporters in NYC misrepresented the risk of tritiated water from the shuttered Indian Point nuclear plant as “radioactive waste dumping into the Hudson.” Obviously that language conjured images of three-eyed fish in The Simpsons. 

But in reality it’s a tiny amount of a harmless radioisotope, which is in large quantities in our water from trashed red exit signs and shooting star dust than from nuclear plants.

Accuracy in reporting is crucial, especially when it comes to complex topics like nuclear energy. Misrepresentation can lead to unnecessary fear and misunderstanding. It's important for journalists to provide accurate information to the public to avoid sensationalism and misconceptions.