Whether the US Newspapers and Television Have Informed the Public about Global Warming - Essay Example

After the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change declared that there is “unequivocal” evidence to prove that earth is warming up to disastrous levels (that global warming is a reality), the world is faced with the challenge of living up to that reality and finding a solution (as cited in Gore, 2008). This paper envisages finding out whether the US newspapers and television, which can be considered the most important mainstream media, have informed the public about the real measures needed to tackle global warming.

It is hypothesized that the two most circulated US newspapers and the two television channels with the largest viewership have been focusing their attention on only peripheral solutions to global warming instead of paying attention to the basic policy changes required. Rhetoric Versus Real Action As Friedman (2008) has pointed out, green living in the US has become a fashion of sorts rather than a commitment that involves hardcore political and economic choices (p.203-216). As a result, the real “scales” by which the problem has to be understood, measured, and addressed are still lacking (Friedman, 2008, p.209-216). In other words, environmentalism in the US is still dwelling on the rhetorical level and has not yet entered the realm of real action (Friedman, 2008, p.215). But all the same, if there is a conviction to move forward, there are several viable alternatives presented, as done by Al Gore (2008).

Al Gore (2008) has stressed that there is full scope for convergence of actions meant to solve climate change and the “economic” and “energy security crisis” and has provided many examples. But Friedman (2008) is rather pessimistic as he is conscious of the magnitude of the task in front (p.209-215). But there are no “easy” or ‘consumer-friendly’ ways to go green (Friedman, 2008, p.203-4). And it is evident from this discourse that global warming can be reduced only by path-breaking policies and corresponding action.

What the US citizens can do towards this end should not be limited by the easy and ready-made solutions provided by trendy rhetoric. It is in this context that two major newspapers and two most popular television channels will be scrutinized in this study over a certain period, by examining all the environmental reports that came in them during this period. The solutions offered in each of these reports will be categorized into two groups, namely, easy solutions and real solutions (related to policy and law).