The Portrayal of Climate Change in the Edmonton Journal

Abstract

The presentation will detail the results of a content analysis of Edmonton Journal articles that examines the publication's portrayal of climate change from 2013 - 2016. Articles were coded for valence (whether climate change was portrayed positively or negatively), voice (which actors were given the opportunity to discuss the issue), scope (if the issue was emphasized as being a local versus global problem), skepticism (support versus denial of climate change as being an issue), and responsibility (who should be acting to resolve the climate change issue). Results for valence, responsibility, and skepticism will be discussed autonomously, but also within the context of current political attitudes in North America regarding climate change. Limitations of the study as well as ideas and implications for future research will also be addressed. Content analysis research began as an independent study and was completed with the USRI grant under the supervision of Dr. Shelley Boulianne.

Discipline: Psychology

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Shelley Boulianne