Climate Shift Fellows Awarded NSF Grant to Study Media & Climate Change Perceptions
Climate Shift Project faculty fellows Sol Hart and Lauren Feldman, both Assistant Professors of Communication at American University, have been awarded a National Science Foundation grant to study the influence of media frames on selective perceptions about climate change. A description of the multi-year project is below. Communicating about Climate Change: The Influence of...
At the Scientist Magazine, Five Myths about Science, the Media, and the Public
In an opinion article at The Scientist magazine, Dietram Scheufele and I discuss 5 intuitive but persistant myths about science, the media, and the public, drawing on conclusions discussed at the recent National Academies “Science of Science Communication” conference. The five myths we highlight include: 1. Americans no longer trust scientists. 2. Science journalism is...
Reading List for Course on Science and Environmental Communication
This semester, students from a diversity of majors at American University are participating in an advanced seminar I am teaching on science and environmental communication. For the first part of the semester, we are covering core issues and themes. In the process, students will be blogging on related selected topics while finalizing their research paper topic....
The Science of Science Communication: National Academies Event Examines Our Inconvenient Minds and Social Identities
Over the past decade, there has been an explosion of research from the social and behavioral sciences offering insight on how individuals, social groups and political systems come to understand and make decisions related to science, the environment, technology, and medicine. Research in this area stretches across disciplinary boundaries, university departments, funding agencies and field-specific...
Study Maps the Relationship Between Cable News and Climate Change Perceptions
A new study finds that Fox News tends to feature guests who doubt the reality of climate change and stories that dismiss the need for action, while CNN and MSNBC tend to feature guests who assert the reality of climate change and the need for action. Interestingly, however, Fox tends to devote more attention to...
Public Opinion and Participation in the Climate Change Debate
Public opinion about climate change, observes the New York Times’ Andrew Revkin, can be compared to “waves in a shallow pan,” easily tipped with “a lot of sloshing but not a lot of depth.” In a recently published chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Climate Change and Society, I review research that provides several explanations...
Call for Papers: International Public Communication of Science and Technology Conference
18-20 April 2012 Florence, Italy 12th International Public Communication of Science and Technology Conference Quality, Honesty and Beauty in Science Communication The 12th International PCST (Public Communication of Science and Technology) Conference will be held in Florence, Italy, 18-20 April 2012. The PCST International Network and the Italian conference hosts have pleasure in inviting you...
Studies by Faculty Fellow Sol Hart and Colleagues Examine Environmental Values, the Framing of Climate Change, and Energy Use
This spring, Climate Shift faculty fellow Sol Hart has published three studies with colleagues examining how environmental values, framing and perceptions of fairness shape policy preferences, views on climate change and support for university-based energy initiatives respectively. The articles with their abstracts are below and you can contact Professor Hart to request PDF copies if...
