When people think of climate change in the news, they often think about extreme weather events or warnings about rising emissions. While these stories are important, there are concerns among some scholars and practitioners that they may be overwhelming or discouraging.
Some experts believe that news coverage should focus more on positive stories to avoid leaving people feeling hopeless. But we still need more research to understand whether this kind of approach is actually helpful. That’s why I conducted research to explore how news about climate solutions impacts both news readers and the journalists who produce these stories.
Solutions journalism is based on the idea that reporting on answers to problems is just as important as reporting on the problems themselves. For example, a solutions journalist could highlight successful projects that reduce emissions or help people adapt to climate risks.
In my research, I considered how seeing news about solutions could affect people’s beliefs and actions related to climate change. Here’s what I found.
In the first part of my research, I conducted an online experiment to see how people responded to a news story about solar power. After reading the story, participants felt more confident that solar energy could work as a climate solution (this is called “response efficacy”) and believed more strongly in people’s ability to support solar energy as a group (this is called “collective efficacy”).
This is important because the people who felt confident in solar energy after reading the story were also more likely to act. This included activities such as signing up for information about solar advocacy or supporting solar energy petitions. Two weeks later, those same people were still likely to engage with solution opportunities.
In the second part of my research, I interviewed 25 environmental journalists to learn about their experiences with climate solutions reporting. They felt these stories were important because they could help educate the public without making people feel discouraged. By focusing on solutions, journalists hope to provide information and resources that people might need to evaluate and engage with a response to climate change.
However, the journalists also pointed out some major challenges. First, they highlighted that climate change is complicated, and it’s hard to explain the pros and cons of any one solution (like solar energy) without oversimplifying. Next, many cited the issue that journalists often don’t have the time or resources they need to cover these complex issues in depth. Lastly, many journalists indicated that they weren’t trained specifically in environmental reporting, so they have to figure out the best way to cover these stories on their own.
Despite these challenges, journalists believe that solutions journalism can help people understand both the possibilities for major change and their role in making it happen. For example, they want to provide people with the information they might need to take steps like voting for pro-environmental candidates or making changes in their own homes to reduce their carbon footprint.
To make climate solutions reporting even better, here are some changes that could help:
- Better access to research: Journalists need easier access to reliable information and expert sources so they can provide accurate, well-rounded stories. University libraries could provide continued access to research for alumni.
- More training: Universities could offer more specific training for journalism students on how to cover climate change and solutions.
- Open access to research: Academic journals could make research papers more accessible, especially to journalists, so they can report on the latest findings without hitting paywalls.
This is important because solutions journalism has the potential to help the public feel more empowered in the fight against climate change. By focusing on what’s working, these news stories can motivate people to act. At the same time, journalists need support to overcome the challenges of reporting on complex issues like climate change.
Climate solutions journalism is a promising approach to helping people feel more hopeful and engaged in tackling climate risks. With more research and better support for journalists, this style of reporting could make a real difference in how we respond to climate change as a society.
Cassandra Troy graduated with a Ph.D. in mass communications from Penn State’s Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications in summer 2024, and her advisers were Jessica Gall Myrick and Chris Skurka. She currently works as an assistant professor in the journalism department at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research focuses on environmental communication and collective action, with an emphasis on positive and solutions-oriented climate change messaging.
Funding acknowledgment: This material is based on work supported by a doctoral dissertation research improvement grant from the DRMS Program of the U.S. National Science Foundation under award No. 2314800. Findings and conclusions do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agency. This research was conducted when Cassandra Troy was a doctoral student at Penn State. You can read more detailed summaries of Study 1 or Study 2. The full dissertation is available online.
This blog post was written/edited in collaboration with Kevin Sliman.
Cassandra LC Troy
