More than meets the eye: a longitudinal analysis of climate change imagery in the print media

Abstract

Images are ubiquitous in everyday life. They are a key part of the communication process, shaping peoples' attitudes and policy preferences on climate change. Images which have come to dominate visual portrayals of climate change (and conversely, those that are marginalised or excluded) influence how we interact with climate change in our everyday lives. This paper presents the first in-depth, cross-cultural and longitudinal study of climate change visual discourse. It examines over a thousand images associated with articles about climate change in UK and US newspapers between 2001 and 2009, a pivotal decade for climate change engagement. Content, frame and iconographic analyses reveal a remarkably consistent visual discourse in the UK and US newspapers. The longitudinal analysis shows how the visual representation of climate changed mid-decade. Before 2005, a distancing frame was common. Imagery of polar landscapes acted as a visual synecdoche for distant climate risk. After 2005, there was a rapid increase in visual coverage, an increase in use of the contested visual frame, alongside an increase in climate cartoons, protest imagery and visual synecdoches. These synecdoches began to be subverted and parodied, particularly in the right-leaning press. These results illustrate the rise of climate change scepticism during the mid-2000s. This study has implications for public engagement with climate change. It shows that the contested and distancing visual frames are deeply and historically embedded in the meaning-making of climate change. Additionally, it showcases the importance of visual synecdoches, used by newspapers in particular circumstances to engage particular audiences. Knowing and understanding visual use is imperative to enable an evidence-based approach to climate engagement endeavours.

A Systems Thinking Approach to Exploring the Influence of the Media on How Publics Engage With and Develop Dialogues Relating to Electric Vehicles

“…However, they are ultimately defined through shared characteristics, including but not limited to socio-economic status, age, gender, political stance, environmental values and education (Miller et al, 2007;Ryghaug et al, 2011). These characteristics have been studied extensively in relation to general climate change (Boykoff, 2014;O'Neill, 2019). However, their influence on communications relating to alternative technologies associated with climate change remains understudied.…”

“…EVs are often included in this domain of dialogues as a low-carbon alternative technology (Langheim et al, 2014). They are referred to as a component of climate change, which itself has been studied extensively in terms of media framing and public dialogue (Boykoff and Boykoff, 2007;Tiessen et al, 2008;Olausson, 2009;Boykoff, 2014;Langheim et al, 2014;O'Neill, 2019), but EVs themselves are yet to be researched in any detail with regards to media framing and public dialogue. In this study, we explore EV-related media communications available to publics through their own experiences.…”

Worlds apart, drawn together: Bears, penguins and biodiversity in climate change cartoons

“…From around 2005' (p. 123). From around -2009, visual images including polar bears gained prominence (O'Neill, 2019). Today, polar bears have become an icon of our times (Nerlich, 2019), representing 'affective animals' in the context of CC, a 'physical and visual embodiment of the Arctic' (p. 14) (Huggan, 2016).…”

“…Owen and Swaisgood (2008) referred to polar bears as the ‘poster child for climate change and the focus of increasing media attention’ (p. 123). From around 2005–2009, visual images including polar bears gained prominence (O’Neill, 2019). Today, polar bears have become an icon of our times (Nerlich, 2019), representing ‘affective animals’ in the context of CC, a ‘physical and visual embodiment of the Arctic’ (p. 14) (Huggan, 2016).…”

“…Although the media reception of CC has been widely researched (e.g. Boykoff, 2007a, 2007b; Boykoff and Boykoff, 2004; see also Manzo and Padfield, 2016, and O’Neill, 2019, for more extensive bibliography), and images have been shown to impact how people feel and act on CC (Leiserowitz, 2006), the analysis of cartoons on this matter has traditionally been a marginal note at best (Domínguez et al, 2017). In fact, O’Neill and Smith (2014: 84) claimed that some types of visuals, as cartoons, ‘are either missing entirely, or worthy of more in-depth exploration’ (Manzo, 2012; Rudiak-Gould, 2011).…”