AGU - Earth | Oceans | Atmosphere | Space | Planets

Charles W. Petit, a veteran science writer, received the 2011 Robert C. Cowen Award for Sustained Achievement in Science Journalism at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 7 December 2011 in San Francisco, Calif. Petit covered earthquakes for the San Francisco Chronicle during the 1980s and 1990s and has recently served as “head tracker” for the Knight Science Journalism Tracker, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology–based daily blog that compiles and critiques science reporting worldwide. Petit was previously honored by AGU in 2003 when he received the David Perlman Award for an article about a new finding in oceanography. The Cowan Award, named for a former science editor of the Christian Science Monitor, is given no more than every 2 years and recognizes a journalist who has made “significant, lasting, and consistent contributions to accurate reporting or writing” on the Earth and space sciences for the general public.

Citation:

I have known Charlie Petit for almost 30 years, and during that time I have always marveled at his illustrious journalistic career. That certainly gives me the perspective, and the pleasure, to be the citationist upon his being honored with a lifetime achievement award.Charlie and I first met in 1984, when we were both fellows in the second class of the Knight Fellowship at Massachusetts Institute... Read More »

Response:

Thank you, Horst, for the wonderful, overly flattering citation. Thank you also to my mentors and colleagues who have been with me during important parts of my career. Most important is David Perlman, science editor of the San Francisco Chronicle. I worked with him for 26 years at the paper, which is less than half as long as he has been there. I continue to rely... Read More »