Comparison of Climate Change Newspaper Articles in Japan, the United States, Britain

Focusing on IPCC Fourth Assessment Report and Fifth Assessment Report

Abstract

This study was conducted to elucidate characteristics of reports in Japan by particularly addressing reporting related to IPCC Fourth Assessment Report and Fifth Assessment Report. Target newspapers were The Asahi Shimbun, The New York Times, and The Guardian, which positively report climate change issues. Reports published one week after the completion of Working Group 1 (WG1) to Working Group 3 (WG3) were assessed. The numbers of reporting, frame of controversy, and report contents were compared. Results show some identifiable tendencies: in Japan, the scientific frame such as WG1 is less emphasized; in editorials, discussions based on policy actors aren’t prominent.