Analysis: Global Media's Framing of Climate Crisis, SOC 223

This report examines how global media outlets frame the climate crisis and the subsequent influence on public opinion, as requested by the SOC 223 course. The analysis delves into the amount of coverage in both traditional news and social media, exploring the framing strategies employed. The report references specific global events like COP21 and the Paris climate change talks, the Papal Encyclical, President Obama’s Clean Power Plan, and Naomi Klein’s book "This Changes Everything" to illustrate how different media outlets cover climate change. The study notes that while there's increased media attention on climate change, the framing often focuses on extreme weather events, potentially creating a sense of imminent terror. Furthermore, it highlights that media coverage varies across nations, and factors like political events often drive coverage. The report also discusses the use of celebrities in climate change coverage, which reinforces individualized interpretations of solutions. It emphasizes the importance of understanding how media shapes public attitudes and perceptions towards climate change, which is vital for generating political will and swift action. References are made to the works of Corbett, Forde, Foxwell-Norton, Hackett, Laurent, Parks, and Silver, who have studied the effects of media coverage on climate change.

Running head: MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
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1MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
Global climate crisis in terms of media
Change of climate is global phenomenon. Societies are around by its outcomes all over
the world. However, climate change’s media representations have concentrated mostly on the
societies of western countries. Media coverage has effect on the public opinion over change of
climate as this mediates climate change’s scientific opinion that record of global temperature
shows increment in last few decades and this trend is mainly due to greenhouse gases’ emissions
(Parks, 2020). Almost every scientific body of international or national standing agreeing with
the view. Media coverage is high within countries dependent on carbon with the commitments
under Kyoto protocol. Coverage of climate change has increased within every country.
Media scholars and scientists who are frustrated with inappropriate science reporting
states that this could lead to three primary distortions: reality is distorted by journalists by
committing scientific error, they distort through keying stories of human interest instead of
scientific content and journalists distort with stiff adherence to balanced coverage’s construct.
Media are modern societies’ major interpretative system and critical for societal uptake for
climate change as well as climate politics (Corbett, 2019). As change of global climate lies
beyond biographical horizons as well as life world of maximum people, its knowledge is
disseminated mainly through pubic communication. As for general audience and high
circulation, media is pivotal in this regard. It is seen that pubic draws maximum knowledge
about issue from mass media. Media constitute central forum of climate governance’s
legitimation and discussion.

2MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
Huge unexplored role is played by media coverage in climate crisis all over the world.
Media attention for global warning and climate change, amid showing interest in social, political,
economic, cultural and environmental issues all over the world. With respect to media attention,
global warming or climate change garnered coverage by stories manifesting primary themes such
as ecological or meteorological, economic, cultural, scientific and political themes. As essential
role is played by news media for awareness of public as well as perception in change of climate
and behavior of the citizens (Silver, 2019). Commentators argue that change in climate
discourses constructed in media is not conducive in generating political will to swift action.
Change in climate should be framed as issue that to close to home. Global media’s major benefit
is this brings distant challenges in people’s consciousness.
Climate change’s media coverage is concentrated on events of extreme weather as well as
catastrophe’s projections, which creates imminent terror’s language. While comparing with other
nations like United States, media of Canada doesn’t create neutrality’s similar perception to
balance voice which represent both skeptics as well as scientific consensus equally. Coverage in
Canada appears as more driven through international as well as national political events, instead
of changes in emissions of carbon or other several ecological factors. It is dominated with
matters of policy measures, policymaking and government responsibility for mitigations was
well as ways for mitigating change in climate. Within several language as well as provincial
media outlets, articulation’s varying levels are there with regards to scientific consensus as well
as focus on climate change’s ecological dimensions (Laurent, 2018). Across several nations
which includes Canada, there is increase in effort in using celebrities in coverage of climate
change, which gained attention of audience successfully, however, in turn, this reinforces

3MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
individualized instead of structural interpretations in solutions as well as responsibility of climate
change.
Most nations all over the world adopted legally binding, global agreement to tackle
climate change’s negative impacts. The deal was huge success for the world. However, several
issues dominate negotiation process before as well as immediately after agreement. Soft power
might be used by the nations for influencing other nations. Soft power is ability for influencing
others’ behavior for getting desired outcomes. Recently with vast and fast spread of technology
of internet rise to prominence, known as social media (Foxwell-Norton, 2017). Communication
by social media along with opinion articles as well as news is spread really fast as well as
extremely cheaply. Several governments from Trump to Obama along with actors of non-state
are turning to platform of social media increasingly for delivering political messages as well as
shape opinion of public.
Climate change’s media coverage is under scrutiny, by scholars, activists, journalists and
bloggers themselves. Hugh complaints of uneven coverage are not new. Few think scientific
consensus is distorted by the journalists through granting equal spaces roughly to the dissonant
scientists. Environmental journalists perform work as well as create meaning from this.
Environmental journalists face challenge also to have scientists as the primary sources (Hackett,
2017). Both the groups appears sometimes at odds that might help in explaining few of criticism
as well as confusion regarding coverage of change of climate. Another challenge for the science
journalists is to develop interactional expertise.
Over last decades, change in climate is gaining importance within international political
and scientific debates. Though social sciences, have only become interested with subject as well
as the approach is vague still. Scientific understanding for environmental change as well as

4MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
process to design public policies for facing are characterized through complexity along with
normative and epistemic uncertainties (Forde, 2017). It makes this necessary for problematizing
way where climate change’s social is understand by research efforts. Challenges of change of
climate understanding evidence of it, appreciating the potential impacts as well as developing
new policies and technologies which could help in adapting it. This could be achieved by
ensuring that every young people are given best education possible in technology, mathematics
and science.
Climate change’s media coverage is significant factor to shape public attitudes as well as
perceptions for the issue. At time when change in climate was starting for gaining prominence
and when several televisions and print news operations had the reporters that are assigned to
environmental and science beats (Hackett, 2017). In years, as both news room and climate
responded to the changing conditions, such reports’ pace increased. Change in climate is an issue
for the whole world, however this topic’s media coverage differs for every nation. Coverage of
climate change could be predicted through many national factors.

5MEDIA CULTURE AND SOCIETY
References
Corbett, J. (2019). MEDIA AND CLIMATE CRISIS. AMASS, 24(1), 42-44.
Forde, S. (2017). Environmental protest, politics and media interactions: An overview.
In Journalism and Climate Crisis (pp. 77-93). Routledge.
Foxwell-Norton, K. (2017). Australian independent news media and climate change reporting:
The case of COP21. In Journalism and Climate Crisis (pp. 144-166). Routledge.
Hackett, R. A. (2017). Can Peace Journalism be transposed to Climate Crisis
journalism?. Pacific Journalism Review: Te Koakoa, 23(1), 14-24.
Hackett, R. A. (2017). Conclusion: Media reform for climate action 1. In Journalism and
Climate Crisis (pp. 188-195). Routledge.
Laurent, N. (2018). Journalism and climate crisis: Public engagement, media alternatives [Book
Review]. Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture & Policy, 167, 194.
Parks, P. (2020). Is Climate Change a Crisis–And Who Says So? An Analysis of Climate
Characterization in Major US News Media. Environmental Communication, 14(1), 82-
96.
Silver, A. (2019). 15 The use of social media in crisis communication. Risk Communication and
Community Resilience.