Generational conflict or shared responsibility? Finding common ground across generations
When it comes to climate change, the interests of the young and the old seemingly stand diametrically opposed to one another. But does this oft-cited generational conflict truly exist? Or can our shared responsibility for the future be used to build new bridges? In today’s edition, we explore these questions by looking at three recent […]
Study of the month: How (radical) protest affects publics
Climate protests have repeatedly sparked broad public debates in recent years. At times, activists have even been compared to terrorist organizations—and public discourse has drifted away from the central question of how effective climate action can be achieved. Drawing on two studies, we ask: does it have to be this way? Research shows that both […]
Study of the month: How to reach young people
Young people will be most affected by the consequences of climate change, a problem which many of them are highly aware of. Yet in the increasingly entrenched and polarized climate debates, they are often more spectators than participants—partly because they have limited opportunities to play a role in political processes or influence decisions in business. […]
Study of the month: How to Promote Adaptive Coping with Climate Anxiety
The threats posed by climate change are enormous: extreme weather events, rising sea levels, accelerating species extinction and more dominate media coverage — and understandably cause fear. However, it is both important and very much possible to not become paralyzed by these fears, and instead learn to deal with such negative feelings and worries constructively. In […]
Vortrag: Medien in der Klimakrise
Der Journalismus vernachlässigt immer noch das Thema Klimakrise. Und wenn sie thematisiert wird, dann drohen Debatten in die Polarisierungsfalle zu geraten. An den Rändern des Berufsstands rumort es aber: viele jüngere Journalist:innen geben sich nicht länger mit einer passiven Vermittlung von Politikerstatements und Routineberichterstattung zum Klimawandel zufrieden. Transformativer Journalismus will die Gesellschaft kritisch und konstruktiv […]
Study of the Month: (Disruptive) Climate Protests and Social Media Polarization
Disruptive climate protests attract significantly higher engagement on social media—but also contribute to deeper polarization. This raises questions about how activist movements can—or should—design their actions and communicate their goals in polarized online environments. In our “Study of the Month” series, the blog team presents recent research relevant to climate communication and social media studies. […]
Decreasing Climate Media Coverage in the United States and Germany
Our dataset of climate media coverage in the United States and Germany reveals a worrying development. After a few years of elevated meda attention to climate change, the share of coverage dedicated to the topic is receding in most media in both countries. The following graphs provide some detail. Overall coverage of climate change is […]
Addressing Misconceptions About News Media Coverage of Climate Change
In two simple graphs, we address a number of myths about how news media cover climate change in Germany and the United States. Some people incorrectly assume that climate change (1) has been at the center of journalistic attention for a long time and that (2) this attention has been steadily increasing (3) uniformly across […]