Dead Ducks and Dirty Oil: Media Representations and Environmental Solutions

Nelson, Paul David; Krogman, Naomi; Johnston, Lindsay; Clair, Colleen Cassady St.

doi:10.1080/08941920.2014.948241

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Although newspaper readerships are generally decreasing, newspapers are still an important influencer of public opinion and decision making as they contribute to informal learning [22]. Media can emphasize or de-emphasize certain aspects of the coverage when communicating to their readership, thereby influencing what the public may prioritize [23][24][25].…”

Section: Framing Theory and The News Mediamentioning

confidence: 99%

Communicating with the Public about Emerald Ash Borer: Militaristic and Fatalistic Framings in the News Media

2020

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Invasive species can spread to new landscapes through various anthropogenic factors and negatively impact urban ecosystems, societies, and economies. Public awareness is considered central to mitigating the spread of invasive species. News media contributes to awareness although it is unclear what messages are being communicated. We incorporated Frame Theory to investigate newspapers’ coverage of the emerald ash borer (EAB; Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae)), which has killed millions of ash trees in the continental United States. We conducted a content analysis of 924 news articles published between 2002 and 2017 to examine language framing (how a phenomenon like invasive species is constructed and communicated), information sources, management methods, recommended actions for the public and whether this communication changed overtime. Seventy-seven percent of articles used language evocative of distinctive risk framings, with the majority of these using negative attribute frames like invasion-militaristic and/or fatalistic language to describe EAB management. Few discussed positive impacts like galvanizing public support. Most articles used expert sources, primarily government agents. We recommend that public communications regarding invasive species be cautious about language evoking militarism and fatalism. Furthermore, invasive species communication requires a broader diversity and representation of voices because invasive species management requires community effort.

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Section: Framing Theory and The News Mediamentioning

confidence: 99%

Communicating with the Public about Emerald Ash Borer: Militaristic and Fatalistic Framings in the News Media

2020

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“…Framing strategies used in these competitions are often divergent and lead to shifts in the distribution of public perceptions of risks and benefits (Stoutenborough et al, 2014). For example, the debates and framing surrounding controversial environmental issues are often polarized, emphasizing either the economic benefits or the environmental and social costs (Nelson, Krogman, Johnston, & St. Clair, 2014). Both sides of this polarized debate are engaged in strategic communication to shape the relative weight of different themes of the issue and to win public support for their cause (Matthes, 2011).…”

Section: Framing the Risks And Benefits Of Policy Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Certainty and Uncertainty in Framing the Risks and Benefits of Hydraulic Fracturing in the Colorado News Media

Blair¹,

Weible²,

Heikkila³

et al. 2015

Risk Hazard & Crisis Pub Pol

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Oil and gas development using hydraulic fracturing is an industrial activity that can impose risks to some communities and benefits to others. How policymakers permit, regulate and monitor hydraulic fracturing can be influenced by differing perceptions of the risks and benefits. The media can play a critical role in portraying these perceptions. This article examines how the news media covers different risks and benefits of hydraulic fracturing, which actors are associated with those risks and benefits, and how actors use certainty and uncertainty with risks and benefits. To explore these questions, we coded 198 articles from three Colorado newspapers. The analysis shows differences by newspaper in the coverage of the risks and benefits, particularly the economic and public health themes. The results also show that industry representatives argue for the benefits and safety of hydraulic fracturing with certainty; environmental groups highlight the risks of hydraulic fracturing with similar levels of certainty and uncertainty; and the general public expresses both the benefits and risks, but with greater uncertainty. The results illuminate how people may perceive hydraulic fracturing differently depending on the news media sources and how different actors may use certainty and uncertainty as a strategy to influence the policy process.

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“…Attention to the toxicity of waste water produced by the oil sands industry has risen in recent years, partly because of three widely reported events in which several hundred birds died after landing on OSPW ponds and contacting bitumen ( Nelson et al , 2014 ). The first of these events resulted in the implementation of a standardized monitoring programme that has determined that tens of thousands of birds land on the ponds annually, but that <1% of these appear to die as a result ( St Clair, 2014 ).…”

Section: Conclusion and Research Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The bird protection programmes operating in the oil sands received implicit public approval until recently, when three separate mortality events occurred, each causing the death of between a few and several hundred migrating birds. The first of these landing events occurred on a tailings pond that was not protected by deterrents, resulting in a criminal conviction ( R. v. Syncrude Canada Ltd, 2010 ), sustained media attention ( Nelson et al ., 2014 ) and a new standardized monitoring programme to determine rates at which birds make contact with and die from OSPW ponds ( St Clair et al ., 2013 ). Over the first 3 years of its existence, this programme revealed that tens of thousands of birds land on tailings ponds annually, but few (0.1–1%) appear to suffer acute or subacute mortality as a result ( St Clair, 2014 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence of low toxicity of oil sands process-affected water to birds invites re-evaluation of avian protection strategies

2015

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Dead Ducks and Dirty Oil: Media Representations and Environmental Solutions

Cited by 12 publications

References 28 publications

Communicating with the Public about Emerald Ash Borer: Militaristic and Fatalistic Framings in the News Media

Communicating with the Public about Emerald Ash Borer: Militaristic and Fatalistic Framings in the News Media

Certainty and Uncertainty in Framing the Risks and Benefits of Hydraulic Fracturing in the Colorado News Media

Evidence of low toxicity of oil sands process-affected water to birds invites re-evaluation of avian protection strategies

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