Summer 2007 – The Science and the Politics of Global Warming

Given the explosive growth in media attention to environmental issues, this seminar was organized around how the science and the politics of global warming has been covered in Canadian print media.  Three research teams examined how major Canadian dailies covered global warming in the context of several key events, including: the release of the Stern report (Oct/Nov 2006); the 2007 release of reports from the three IPCC working groups; and the April 2007 introduction of the Conservative plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.

Halimah Basrael and Ryan Yee compared reporting and commentary on these issues in Canada’s two national newspapers, The Globe and Mail and The National Post.

Halimah Basrael and Ryan Yee, Narrative Devices and the Lack of Context: An Examination of News Articles on Global Warming in the Globe and Mail and the National Post, August 2007.

Jesse Bennett and Carolyn Warner examined coverage in The Montreal Gazette and The Calgary Herald, both owned by CanWest yet serving audiences with differing perspectives on the issue.

Jessie Bennett and Carolyn Warner, A Comparison of the Calgary Herald and the Montreal Gazette [on climate change], August 2007.

Cameron Reed and Doris Chow investigated how the tabloids covered global warming with a comparative analysis of The Toronto Sun and The Vancouver Province.  All reports are available for download in the Newswatch Research Publications section.

Cameron Reed and Doris Chow, Newswatch: An analysis of Canadian Print Media’s Coverage of Climate Change [Toronto Sun and Vancouver Province], August 2007.