Are Issue-Cycles Culturally Constructed? A Comparison of French and American Coverage of Global Climate Change

TLDR

The study compares French and American newspaper coverage of global warming from 1987‑1997 to examine how culturally bound journalistic practices shape media attention cycles. Using a content analysis of newspaper articles, the authors analyze coverage patterns, focusing on event‑based framing, international relations emphasis, and viewpoint diversity across the two countries. The analysis reveals that French coverage is more event‑based, centers on international relations, and offers a narrower range of viewpoints, whereas American coverage highlights scientist‑politician conflicts and follows a media‑attention cycle, underscoring the need for cross‑cultural studies to understand media impacts on public opinion.

Abstract

Abstract We present a cross-cultural comparison of newspaper coverage of global warming in France and in the United States (1987-1997) as a case study to analyze the impact of culturally bound journalistic practices on media attention cycles. Based on the results of a content analysis, we show that France's coverage was more event-based, focused more on international relations, and presented a more restricted range of viewpoints on global warming than American coverage did. American coverage emphasized conflicts between scientists and politicians. Downs's "quot;media-attention cycle,"quot; which is apparent for the American coverage, does not manifest as visibly in French coverage. Our findings suggest that research on media coverage of global environmental issues needs to move beyond studies at the national level; cross-cultural comparisons are essential to understand how different news regimes might affect public opinion.