History graduate student and local meteorologist Adam Behrman successfully defended his MA thesis on July 27, 2016. His thesis, entitled “Selling Narratives of a Mexico in Crisis: Environmental Reporting in Excélsior and Uno Más Uno, 1983-84,” examines the diverse environmental narratives found in stories published by two Mexican national newspapers during a period of economic and environmental crisis.
He argues that the popularity of environmental issues permitted column space for journalists, environmentalists, researchers, rural peasants, the urban poor, and government administrators to present their many different environmental narratives for the reading public’s consideration.
Focusing on how journalists and their sources described air pollution, forests, and water crises in the pages of Excélsior and Uno Más Uno, his thesis brings out many of the common themes and persuasive tactics these narrative crafters utilized in their efforts to imprint an environmental perception on the national population.
You may have seen Behrman on television both before and during his graduate education. He worked as a meteorologist for KBOI-TV from 2010 through 2013, and then for KIVI-TV from 2014 through 2016.His love of science and history encouraged him to go back to school at Boise State, where he was introduced to environmental history, the study of how humanity and the environment have interacted throughout history.
As part of his graduate assistantship he had the opportunity to work as an assistant editor for the Environmental History journal under Dr. Lisa Brady, where he learned much about the editorial process. Dr. Jennifer Stevens, a local historian and director of the firm Stevens Historical Research Associates, also served on Behrman’s thesis committee.
After taking a History of Science and Technology graduate seminar with Dr. Emily Wakild, Adam decided to pursue a doctoral degree in the History of Science. He will start such a program this fall with full funding at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with Dr. Gregg Mitman. His dissertation will examine the history of air pollution in Latin America.
Adam’s experience forecasting weather for the Treasure Valley during the frequent winter inversions no doubt played a role in his decision to study how societies, create, experience, and try to mitigate air pollution.