Sceptical Climate

Reports on the media coverage of climate change in Australia by Wendy Bacon and Arunn Jegan.

Sceptical Climate Part 3: Lies, Debates, and Silences: How News Corp produces climate scepticism in Australia

This report presents the results of an investigation into how four publications, owned by Australia’s most powerful media company, News Corp Australia, covered anthropogenic climate change and its impacts from April 2019 to March 2020. These publications are The Australian, Herald Sun, The Daily Telegraph and The Courier Mail. The issues that this report investigates go to the heart of Australia’s politics and system of government.

Sceptical Climate Part 2: Climate Science in Australian Newspapers

The role of media in a democracy is to truthfully report contemporary events and issues to the public. This includes scientific evidence about the crucial issue of climate change. If people are confused or ignorant about potential threats, they cannot be expected to support action to confront them. This report looks at coverage of climate science in ten Australian newspapers between February and April in 2011 and 2012 and asks: What is the quality and nature of climate science reporting in Australia? What role are these publications playing in informing the public about climate science?

Sceptical Climate Part 1: Climate Change Policy

Climate change policy has dominated Australian politics in recent years. While journalists often criticise others for poor communication, they should also be accountable for how they communicate climate change. This Australian Centre for Independent Journalism report analyses how ten publications in mainstream corporate media covered carbon policy for six months in 2011.