Critical Studies in Media Communication · 2011 · 33 citations · 33 references
HumanitiesCommunicationFilm StudiesClimate ScienceRhetoricScience CommunicationClimate ChangeClimate Change Risk PerceptionClimate PoliticsEnvironmental CommunicationRhetoric Of ScienceRhetorical CriticismClimate Change CoverageClimate Science CommunicationClimate StorytellingCommunicator CredibilityEnvironmental Threat PerceptionPerceived Environmental ThreatRhetorical AwarenessRhetorical Narratives
In the summer of 2004, scientists and environmental advocates engaged the film, The Day After Tomorrow, in an effort to raise awareness of global warming as a serious environmental threat. The popular fictional film creates a dilemma for scientists and environmental advocates who highlight the dangers of global warming; while the film's underlying message has scientific merit, the cinematic depictions of such dangers push the boundaries of scientific credibility. This article examines how scientists and skeptics treat the film as a rhetorical resource to articulate claims about global warming science often obscured in existing public discussions of climate change. I argue that the rhetorical strategies used by both sides of the global warming debate demonstrate the opportunities and limitations of popular culture in situated public scientific discourses.
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