Maintaining a politicised climate of opinion? Examining how political framing and journalistic logic combine to shape speaking opportunities in UK elite newspaper reporting of climate change. (May 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Matthews, Julian
• Is Part Of: Public understanding of science. Volume 26:Number 4(2017)
• Page Start: 467
• Page End: 480
• Publication Date: 2017-05
• Subjects: climate change -- framing -- journalism -- journalistic logics -- legitimation -- news access -- news voices -- politicisation; Science news -- Periodicals; Science -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; 303.483
• DOI: 10.1177/0963662515599909
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0963-6625

Abstract

This article explores the importance of issue politicisation and mediation for the reporting of climate change in UK elite newspapers. Specifically, this investigates how journalistic logic mediates political framing to produce commentaries on and discussion about climate change in the news. In analysing elite newspaper coverage over time in this case, the article shows that (1) various frames introduce the issue as a legitimate problem within coverage and that (2) the news stories these inform are opened to specific commentaries according to 'elite journalistic logic'. This configuration of coverage orders the speaking opportunities of established voices of science, politics and industry as well as those less established voices that enter to explain and qualify these elite accounts. The article concludes that the ingrained combination of issue politicisation and journalistic logic observed here will likely shape future elite reporting and those voices that it will include.