Mapping the minds of the mediators: The cognitive frames of climate journalists from five countries

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Sven Engesser - , University of Zurich (Author)
  • Michael Brüggemann - , University of Hamburg (Author)

Abstract

This article is based on the premise that journalists play an important role as mediators of scientific information and their interpretations of climate change influence media debates and public opinion. The study maps the minds of climate journalists from five different countries (Germany, India, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and different types of leading media outlets. It identifies five cognitive frames that vary between attributing the responsibility for climate change to lobbying and national interests, blaming consumerist culture and the capitalist system, and expressing technological optimism. The study provides evidence for the emergence of a sustainability frame, indicates a “blame game” between industrialized countries and emerging economies, and shows the demand for a global ecological discourse. Finally, it explores how individual factors such as specialization, professional aims, and political alignment correlate with the cognitive frames of journalists.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)825-841
Number of pages17
JournalPublic understanding of science : an international journal of research in the public dimensions of science and technology
Volume25
Issue number7
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2016
Peer-reviewedYes
Externally publishedYes

External IDs

PubMed 25968446

Keywords

Research priority areas of TU Dresden

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • climate change, cognitive frames, cross-national comparison, framing, journalism

Library keywords