The New York Times Picks Hannah Fairfield to Lead Climate Coverage

In a note from New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet, managing editor Joe Kahn and deputy managing editor Matt Purdy highlighting the reasons Hannah Fairfield is the best choice to serve as the new climate editor, they refer to a bit of her unique experiential knowledge, writing, “She grew up in Alaska, where the effects of rising temperatures are real and measurable.” But there is also the fact of her not one, but “two master’s degrees from Columbia, one in journalism and the other in environmental science, with a thesis in geochemistry.”