Wolf Media Coverage in the Region of Castilla y León (Spain): Variations over Time and in Two Contrasting Socio-Ecological Settings

Abstract

People’s attitudes towards large carnivores, and thus public support for their conservation, can be influenced by how these species are framed in the media. Therefore, assessing media coverage of large carnivores is of particular interest for their coexistence with humans. I used content analysis to assess how the grey wolf was portrayed in a newspaper in northern Spain, how wolf media coverage varied over time (2006–2017), and in two different socio-ecological settings. Most documents addressed the conflictive relationship between the wolf and livestock (60%; n = 902). Moreover, coverage of this relationship increased over the study period in the south of the study area, where the wolf is strictly protected, has recolonised new localities, and damage to livestock has increased. Overall, other topics, such as wolf conservation or hunting, appeared much less frequently in the media, but predominated in the north of the study area, where the wolf is more abundant and huntable. Conflictive issues like wolf-livestock interactions are generally attractive for audiences, but drawing attention to this issue may compromise the management of conflicts associated with wolves. Ideally, the media should promote potential wolf conservation values if coexistence between wolves and humans is sought.

Knowledge of returning wildlife species and willingness to participate in citizen science projects among wildlife park visitors in Germany

“…This is underlined by numerous reports on wolf attacks that have accumulated for centuries in many parts of the world (Linnell et al, 2002). In addition to human‐carnivore conflicts being reported more frequently and dramatically (Bombieri et al, 2018; Bornatowski et al, 2019; Penteriani et al, 2016; Rode et al, 2021), the high cultural salience of wolves leads to increased media exposure (Delibes‐Mateos, 2020). Although this has not been a focus of our study, we acknowledge that media—or more precisely the way how species are represented in media—plays an important role in how the species are perceived by the public (Pernat et al, 2022; Schakner et al, 2019).…”

Wolf–Hunting Dog Interactions in a Biodiversity Hot Spot Area in Northern Greece: Preliminary Assessment and Implications for Conservation in the Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli Forest National Park and Adjacent Areas

“…However, those were smoother or non-significant when the effect of using GPS units in detecting killed dogs was taken in account. As wolf-related conflicts are given extensive media coverage and may have a considerable negative effect on public perception of wolves [ 77 ], trends should be accurately assessed and reported correctly to the public.…”

Media Content Analysis of Human-Predator Interaction in Indonesia

“…Sebagai contoh, kajian media terhadap interaksi manusia dengan ragam spesies seperti beruang grizzly di Amerika Utara (Hughes et al, 2020), serigala di Amerika, macan tutul di India , dan hiu di Australia (McCagh et al, 2015) menemukan bahwa serangan satwa terhadap manusia mendapatkan liputan yang lebih intensif dari media. Pemberitaan interaksi negatif ini umumnya bersifat sensasional, emosional, menggunakan nada dan diksi negatif, dan episodik atau berfokus pada kejadian spesifik (Delibes-Mateos, 2020;Hughes et al, 2020;Jacobson et al, 2012). Artikel berita dengan karakter di atas dapat meningkatkan rasa takut dan persepsi resiko pembaca terhadap satwa predator (Muter et al, 2009).…”