In addition to the low visibility of environmental news in the media, the nature and quality of what is reported is also somewhat alarming. From our study, despite the public’s misunderstanding of climate change, nearly 25% of all environmental stories that made the headlines were related to this issue. This disparity between understanding and exposure suggests that the information being reported is misleading the public or causing confusion. On the issue of climate change, other studies have found that the media allots equal coverage to voices that deny climate change as to those who acknowledge its existence, even though the existence of climate change is now accepted within the scientific community. In effect, people who don’t agree with widely-supported scientific facts are given a voice.
Our study also revealed that only 30% of environmental news addressed potential solutions. The remaining 70% merely reported the environmental problem and its impact, while only 10% reported new public policies to mitigate the problem.
