Role of Media and Advocacy
Media coverage of climate change has often emphasized catastrophic scenarios and extreme weather attribution, contributing to heightened public alarm. A 2022 study analyzing English-language news media found a significant reporting bias favoring storms and wildfires, with these events receiving disproportionate attention compared to droughts or other impacts, potentially skewing perceptions of risk materiality.[219] This selective focus aligns with broader trends where outlets attribute unusual weather—such as heat waves, floods, and hurricanes—to anthropogenic climate change, even when causal links remain uncertain or unproven.[220] Such framing has fostered a moral panic, as mainstream reporting routinely overlooks empirical inconsistencies in alarmist predictions, including historical forecast failures like exaggerated sea-level rise or Arctic ice loss timelines.[221]
Advocacy organizations, including non-governmental groups like Greenpeace, Sierra Club, and Extinction Rebellion, have played a pivotal role in amplifying these narratives through campaigns, protests, and public shaming tactics. These entities mobilize grassroots pressure and influence policy by correlating their activities with shifts in public opinion on global warming, with studies showing moderate positive associations between environmental NGO presence and supportive attitudes.[222]
![Role of Media and Advocacy
Media coverage of climate change has often emphasized catastrophic scenarios and extreme weather attribution, contributing to heightened public alarm. A 2022 study analyzing English-language news media found a significant reporting bias favoring storms and wildfires, with these events receiving disproportionate attention compared to droughts or other impacts, potentially skewing perceptions of risk materiality.[219] This selective focus aligns with broader trends where outlets attribute unusual weather—such as heat waves, floods, and hurricanes—to anthropogenic climate change, even when causal links remain uncertain or unproven.[220] Such framing has fostered a moral panic, as mainstream reporting routinely overlooks empirical inconsistencies in alarmist predictions, including historical forecast failures like exaggerated sea-level rise or Arctic ice loss timelines.[221]
Advocacy organizations, including non-governmental groups like Greenpeace, Sierra Club, and Extinction Rebellion, have played a pivotal role in amplifying these narratives through campaigns, protests, and public shaming tactics. These entities mobilize grassroots pressure and influence policy by correlating their activities with shifts in public opinion on global warming, with studies showing moderate positive associations between environmental NGO presence and supportive attitudes.[222]](https://fediscience.org/system/media_attachments/files/115/460/240/296/420/060/original/88473348263efaf8.jpg)
