Transcript:

Decades ago, public service announcements asked parents, “It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your children are?”

But a recent campaign to fight online misinformation about climate change turned that script on its head by asking young people, “It’s 10 p.m. Do you know what your parents are scrolling?”

Garcia: “A lot of the reasons why we try to … instill comedy and humor into our videos is because people are more likely to engage and more likely to learn and laugh at the same time.”

Javi Garcia is with the Gas Leaks Project, which teaches people about the harms of fossil fuels.

The group partnered with the nonprofit GreenLatinos to produce videos and social media posts in English and Spanish, encouraging people to help their parents recognize false and misleading content.

He says Latinos are particularly exposed to climate misinformation in part because they often get their news from social media, where false claims are rampant.

Yet at the same time, many live in areas with a high risk of climate disasters.

Garcia: “I’m from Puerto Rico, and we see the effects of climate change happening firsthand – you know, beaches that are being swallowed by the water, more intense hurricanes.”

So he says it’s especially important to counter climate misinformation in Latino communities.

Reporting credit: Ethan Freedman / ChavoBart Digital Media