Won JANGUniv. of

Wisconsin at Eau Claire

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF AMERICAN AND CHINA

COVERAGE OF CLIMATE TALKS, 2007-12

I CARE

Source: http://www.cop19.gov.pl/i-care

Edward Frederick

Univ. of Wisconsin at Whitewater

RESEARCH PROBLEM

Source: Google image

“common but differentiated responsibilities principle”

RESEARCH PROBLEM (CONT’D)

victim and cause

How to bring China/India on board Which countries should mitigate (funding mitigation) and how much should be mitigated

RESEARCH PROBLEM (CONT’D)

This study presented descriptive analysis of climate talks coverage in the United States and China and compared how media framing has been used differently in their news stories from 2007-2012.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

Authoritarianenvironmentalism

Participatoryenvironmentalism

Media Propaganda Model

Dominant Ideology

National Interest

Journalistic Ideology

Media Agenda: News Agencies

Media Framing: "how to think about it"

Public Agenda: “what to think about”

This study uses a quantitative content analysis in terms of the amount, key themes, source, news geography, and types (localized & mobilizing information) in the news of climate talks.

6 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

SampleUN Climate Talks (UNFCCC*: COP** 13-18)Key words: climate change, global warming, or greenhouse, greenhouse gas (GHG), greenhouse effect, or “CO2”

673 stories were analyzed: Xinhua (N =424) and AP (249).

METHODS

*UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Treaty** Conferences of the Parties/Meeting of Parties of the Kyoto Protocol (MOP)

MeasuresFrames/Themes (Brossard, Shanahan, & McComas, 2004) absence (0) to outstanding focus (2)

Sources (Brossard, Shanahan, & McComas, 2004)

Localized & Mobilizing information (Cohen et al., 2008) absent (0) or present (1)

News geography (Giffard & Leuven, 2008; de Beer & Merrill (2009))

METHOD

RESULTS

IPCC reportNCCP* in China

CopenhagenAccord

US/China clashed at Tianjin talks!

*National Climate Change Program in 2007

RESULTSR2: How is it covered in terms of climate change themes?

RESULTSR3: Are there differences with respect to information source use patterns on the issue of climate change?

RESULTSR4: Is there a difference with respect to how frequently climate change stories mention geographic regions?

Climate change stories in the Xinhua (n=290, 68.4%) were more likely to include localized information than were stories in the AP (n=154, 61.8%).

But this difference was NOT significant.

RESULTSR5: Is there a difference with respect to how frequently climate change stories include localized information?

Climate change stories in AP (n=35, 14.1%) were more likely to include personal behavior mobilization information than were stories in the Xinhua (n=51, 12.0%).

This difference was NOT significant.

RESULTSR6: Is there a difference with respect to how frequently climate change stories include personally mobilizing information?

The story of the climate talks is told in different ways in different countries.

Media Propaganda ModelDifferences found in the amount and nature of climate talks coverage, specifically themes, sources used, and news geography for readers (media agenda).

DISCUSSION

Integration of Environmentalism and EconomicsThemesSources

Uncertainty and debate (controversy) in climate change coverageSources usedThemes (discussion of science)

DISCUSSION

The geographic regions from which reports are fi led can be an important factor in what perspectives are made part of public discourse. Developed and Developing countries

Both agencies tailor climate talks stories to their audiences (e.g., Asian and American) and integrate information that is localized.

Limited number of personal behavior mobilization information Both agencies do not facilitate citizen's political

participation among the readers.

DISCUSSION

Limitations The Online full-text database vs. Hard Copy Content analysis

Future studies need to expand this work to investigate news framing in a cross-cultural and an international context in more detail using more aspects of content.

Future research could move forward to examining how media coverage of this controversial issue has influenced the publics’ perceptions of and support for policy.

DISCUSSION

Public Policy Model + Public Opinion Researchauthoritarian environmentalism (top-down

policy): concentrates authority in a few executive agencies manned by capable and uncorrupt elites seeking to improve environmental outcomes.

parti cipatory environmentalism: spreads authority across several levels and agencies of government, including representative legislatures, and that encourages direct public participation from a wide cross-section of society

IMPLICATIONS/FUTURE STUDIESGilley (2012)

END