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Climate in the News: the British Press and the Discursive Construction of the Greenhouse Effect

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Climate in the News: the British Press and the Discursive Construction of the Greenhouse Effect CLIMATE IN THE NEWS THE BRITISH PRESS AND THE DISCURSIVE CONSTRUCTION OF THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT Anabela Simoes de Carvalho Department of Geography University College London Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of London 2002 ProQuest Number: U642200 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest. ProQuest U642200 Published by ProQuest LLC(2015). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract The media have a crucial role in the production, reproduction and change of ideas and are a central marketplace of arguments for the public and political construction of climate change. The thesis aims to analyse the various representations of this complex issue in the British ‘quality’ press, more specifically in the Guardian, The Independent and The Times. Using an innovative framework for discourse analysis, the thesis deconstructs the ways the science and the politics of climate change were reported and debated in the press between 1985 and 1997. Critically reading media discourse in order to understand how the interpretations advanced by various social actors are amplified or challenged by newspapers, to shed light on to how scientific knowledge is presented to the public in the news and how this relates to value systems in the media, as well as to evaluate the role of the media in consolidating or contesting political options and ideological standings are the thesis’ main goals. My analytical approach to discourse integrates various dimensions and tools of analysis, with highlight to discursive strategies and discursive effects, and ideological standpoints. Such framework has both a synchronic and diachronic scope. Discourse analysis indicates the existence of important differences between the three newspapers’ depictions of climate change - they truly promoted alternative versions of reality. I suggest that such differences are associated to ideological cultures that are sustained by media institutions and by the individuals they give voice to (journalists and other contributors). In fact, together with the news medium, the author of the article seems to be a central factor explaining variations in the framing and portrayal of climate change. The thesis helps us know the extent to which the British ‘quality’ press legitimates certain political options, positions and values, or promotes a valuable critique of various alternatives. Acknowledgements I am deeply grateful to my supervisor, Prof. Jacquie Burgess, for the multiple v^ays in which she helped me completing this thesis. Her intellectual guidance has been constantly inspirational, and her unfailing support and enthusiasm made this project possible. I greatly cherish her analytical insight and her friendship. My second supervisor. Prof. Carolyn Harrison, provided important advice for some chapters, and members of ESRU (Environment and Society Research Unit) of the Department of Geography at UCL gave me a number of ideas and suggestions. I acknowledge their sharp comments. I received useful feedback from a number of people in various conferences where I presented papers related to this thesis. To all those anonymous academics, thank you. I would like to express my gratitude for institutional and personal support at the Institute de Ciências Sociais at the Universidade do Minho, Portugal, where I am an Assistant Lecturer. I am particularly indebted to Prof. Anfbal Alves, Prof. Manuel Pinto, Prof. Helena Sousa and Prof. Carolina Leite for their help with teaching commitments and for their kind concern for me. Thanks are also due to Felisbela Lopes, Rosa Cabecinhas and Ana Soares for many forms of assistance and encouragement. The research for this thesis was funded by several Portuguese institutions: Universidade do Minho, Fundaçâo para a Ciência e Tecnologia, and Centro de Ciências Histôricas e Sociais (Universidade do Minho). I acknowledge their financial backing. Catarina Cardoso and Alexandra Lazaro granted me with access to databases that were important for collecting some of the data used in the thesis. Thank you also, Alexandra and Nuno Silva, for the long stays at your homes and for your friendship. Finally, a word of appreciation to my husband Jarle Brinchmann and to my family. Jarle’s computer skills were extremely helpful for various aspects of this thesis. Most importantly, his loving care was crucial throughout the years. Thank you for having been there all this time. To my mother and brother, Deolinda and Victor Carvalho, thanks for understanding my prolonged absence from home and for always believing in me. I dedicate this thesis to my late father Manuel Carvalho, to my mother, and to Jarle. Table of Contents A bstract...............................................................................................................................2 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ 3 Table of Contents ...............................................................................................................4 List of Tables...................................................................................................................... 9 List of Figures and Graphs ............................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.................................................................................10 1. T h e birth o f the c lim ate c h a n g e a g e n d a .............................................................................................11 2. T h e m e d ia t io n a n d (re ) construction of r e a l ity ............................................................................. 19 3. T h e significance of d is c o u r s e ...................................................................................................................25 4. O bject a n d str u c tu r e of the t h e s is ........................................................................................................29 CHAPTER 2: MEDIATING THE ENVIRONMENT: ARENAS, SOCIAL ACTORS AND NEWSMAKING................................................................................ 33 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................... 33 1. S c ience , politics a n d the m e d ia : the environment in a v a r iet y of soc ial a r e n a s ... .3 5 1.1. Sociological perspectives into science and science-making ................................. 35 1.2. Policy-making at a crossroads ................................................................................. 41 2. M anufacturing n e w s : m e d ia a n d the environment ......................................................................46 2.1. The making of mediated reality ............................................................................... 47 2.2. Social agency and media’s representations of reality ........................................... 57 2.3. Ideology and the media ............................................................................................ 65 Co n c l u sio n s .................................................................................................................................................................69 CHAPTER 3: THE DATA: COLLECTION, TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION.................................................70 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................... 70 1. D a t a collection a n d selection ...............................................................................................................70 1.1. Data gathering......................................................................................................... 70 4 1.2. Constitution of the corpus .....................................................................................74 2. Distribution of press coverage in t i m e ............................................................................................... 7 7 3. A u th o r sh ip a n d morphological a spe c t s of press representations ....................................80 3.1. Authorship .................................................................................................................81 3.2. Position of articles within the paper .......................................................................84 3.3. Article size.................................................................................................................85 C o n c l u sio n s .................................................................................................................................................................8 6 CHAPTER 4: THEO-METHODOLOGICAL OPTIONS: DEVISING A FRAMEWORK FOR DISCOURSE ANALYSIS........................................................87
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