Are the press losing patience with climate?

On May 3 we celebrate World Press Freedom Day. Launched back in 1998 and observed by UNESCO, the day celebrates the fundamental principles of press freedom; to defend the media from attacks on their independence and acknowledge journalists who put their lives at risk in the exercise of their profession.

Each year has a specific topic focus. This year is “Journalism in the face of an environmental crisis”. Not a subject typically associated with personal risk (where political reporting in Russia or China might be), it is, however, a subject that hits at the lives of everyone. Whether we wish to acknowledge it or not (and we should), the climate and biodiversity crisis is affecting billions of people.

As UNESCO puts it: “Exposing the crisis is the first step to solving it. That’s why the role of journalists is crucial. It is through their work, their courage and their perseverance that we can know what is happening across the planet.”

Not an especially controversial position to take, you’d think. However, the subject of climate change has become increasingly politicised and, as such, increasingly polarising. In an era where social media allows almost everyone a public platform to debate, everything now is apparently up for debate. Climate change is no different.

Despite overwhelming evidence that levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere influences weather patterns, and humans excel both at producing CO2 and killing off natural ways of absorbing it (e.g. deforestation), the vast majority of the scientific community has concluded, humans are now a primary influence on our climate.

But scientific consensus does not always neatly translate into the general population’s attitudes. According to the Pew Research Centre, less than half (46%) of US citizens agree on the above, one in four believe warming is mostly caused by natural patterns and a further 14% are adamant there’s no evidence of global warming at all.

This is where the press plays a crucial role. It’s not the job to natively support one view or another, but it is important to present evidence in ways that resonate with audiences. Data is one fundamental route to this as much as human storytelling is.

In fairness to the press industry, attention on the subject has broadly risen alongside the political urgency of the subject. Column inches dedicated to the subject has been high up the agenda in the last two decades, but there are signs of decline.

According to data compiled by the Media and Climate Change Observatory (MCCO), which records coverage of climate change and global warming within quality print and newswire media, there is a distinct decrease in coverage in the last two years – after an historical high in 2021.

Equally, while the work of MCCO is important, it’s coverage is limited to print and newswires. What is driving this slowdown is unclear from the data, although news fatigue could be a factor.

Doom and gloom headlines – and there are plenty of those within environment and climate – only work so far. If people feel like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, or that they have don’t have a stake in solving a problem, then they soon turn their head away from that problem.

That said, there is evidence that social media can play a positive role in engaging people to act. A recent study conducted in China by journalism academics found that “exposure to information in the media amplifies individuals’ adaptation to eco-friendly behaviours.” The mechanism for positive influence, regardless of media platform, is potentially a very real one.