Abstract:
While studies have investigated UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) meetings as drivers of climate change reporting as well as the geopolitical
role of Pacific Islands in these international forums, little research examines the intersection: how media coverage of Pacific Islands and climate change (PICC) may be influenced by, or may influence, UNFCCC meetings. We analyze two decades of reporting
on PICC in American, British, and Australian newspapers—looking at both volume
and content of coverage—and expand the quantitative results with semi-structured
interviews with journalists and Pacific stakeholders. Issue attention on PICC increases
and the content changes significantly in the periods around UNFCCC meetings, with
shifts from language about vulnerability outside of UNFCCC periods to language
about agency and solutions. We explore the implications of these differences in coverage
for both agenda setting and the amplification of emotional appeals in UNFCCC
contexts.
