The climate crisis is one of the defining issues – if not the defining issue – of our era. Edelman’s recently launched Trust Barometer Special Report on Climate shows that people know this. 77% of people are worried about climate change, yet 57% agree there has been little to no progress to address it.  

Climate action can be rallied by empowering individuals with the guidance and solutions they need to effect change. But to get there, people need widespread access to trustworthy and understandable information. Our Trust Barometer Special Report found that of the 85% of people who notice a gap between their current lifestyle and how climate-friendly they would like it to be, 74% agreed that they lacked information on how to reduce their climate impact.   

Edelman has partnered with the Reuters Institute for the study of Journalism to launch their special climate report which takes a deep dive into how people today consume climate news. The Reuters Digital News Report is the most comprehensive study of news consumption, based on a YouGov survey of over 93,000 online news consumers in 46 markets.

The climate report shows that political polarisation, disinformation or just the sense that the climate emergency is too depressing or intractable, is making it difficult to garner audience attention. Specifically:

• In markets where there is greater political polarisation (between the left and right), there is less overall interest in climate change news – this is the case in the United States and Australia for example
• When it comes to consuming climate news, people pay greater attention to documentaries (39%) than to major news organisations (33%)
• Respondents under 35 in many markets are often two or three times more likely to say they pay attention to celebrities, social media personalities, or activists for climate change news than people over 35
• When it comes to reporting on climate news, audiences in Northern European, Western European, and North American markets favour impartiality from journalists, whereas in Latin America, Southern Europe and parts of Asia Pacific audiences are more open to news outlets taking a stand in favour of climate action
• Younger audiences are also much more likely to want news organisations to take a stand on climate action
   

Watch the event

On Monday 28th November, we hosted a panel discussion, in partnership with the Reuters Institute for the study of Journalism, digging into the insights on how people access news about climate change. The discussion explored the role of media as a conduit for driving action, and how our institutions can work with the media to move away from the “one-size fits all model” for communicating about climate change.

The event was chaired by Mark McGinn, Executive Director, Sustainability, Social Impact and Purpose, Edelman, who was joined by our panel of experts:

• David Saddington FRGS, Climate Change Communicator
• Sarah Shenker, Head of Special Projects, BBC News
• Lucy Siegle, Journalist, Broadcaster and Opinion Leader
• Rasmus Nielsen, Director, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
   

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