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Examining Information on Polar Bears and Climate Change: A Mainstream Media Perspective

This research project analyzes newspaper articles from 2004 to 2008 to explore the reporting of issues related to polar bears and climate change. It examines the representation of key players, the valuation of knowledge systems, and the voices heard in the mainstream media. The study also highlights the conflicting views between Inuit traditional knowledge and Western science.

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Examining Information on Polar Bears and Climate Change: A Mainstream Media Perspective

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  1. Mainstream Media Publications and Northern Issues: Examining the Nature of Information Available to the Public Lee Foote, Naomi Krogman, Doug Clark and Lindsay Johnston, with the support of Allison Sivak University of Alberta, Edmonton

  2. The Research Team Dr. Lee Foote: Natural Scientist in the Department of Renewable Resources in the Faculty of Agriculture, Life, and Environmental Sciences at the University of Alberta Dr. Naomi Krogman: Environmental Sociologist in the Department of Rural Economy in the Faculty of Agriculture, Life, and Environmental Sciences at the University of Alberta Dr. Doug Clark: Post Doctoral Fellow in the Department of Renewable Resources in the Faculty of Agriculture, Life, and Environmental Sciences at the University of Alberta Lindsay: Liaison Librarian for Renewable Resources and Biological Sciences at the U of A Libraries Allison Sivak: University of Alberta Libraries Assessment Librarian

  3. The Coding Project Content analysis of newspaper articles from 2004 to 2008 on polar bears and climate change: • How are the issues reported to the public? • Who’s voices are heard? • What knowledge systems are valued? • Inuit traditional knowledge often at odds with western science • How are the key players represented? • Inuit, scientists, government agencies, environmental groups, companies, Canadians, Americans, etc.

  4. The Events • February-July 2005: Greenpeace, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Natural Resources Defense Council petitioned to have the polar bear listed as threatened • 2005-2008: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service takes longer than allotted time to make decision. Environmental groups sue for decision. • May 14, 2008: Polar Bears listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act • Department of the Interior: Protecting the Polar Bear • Federal Register • May 15, 2008:Final Rule, January 9, 2007:Proposed Rule

  5. "Around Nunavut: Conservation groups file for polar bear protection," Nunatsiaq News, Dec. 9, 2005. http://www.nunatsiaq.com/archives/51209/news/nunavut/briefs.html • "Greenpeace, the Centre for Biological Diversity and the Natural Resources Defence Council first petitioned to have the polar bear listed as threatened last February [Feb. 2005]. Under the [U.S.] Endangered Species Act, the Secretary of the Interior has 90 days to reply. But having not received a reply to their petition by October, the three groups served a notice of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for action."

  6. George, Jane. " Polar bear sport hunt under threat from U.S." Nunatsiaq News, July 15, 2005.http://www.nunatsiaq.com/archives/50715/news/nunavut/50715_01.html • "The 154-page petition, which contains scientific information, as well a supplemental letter, cites global warming as the primary threat to polar bears, in addition to other threats such as oil and gas development in the Arctic, high levels of contaminants in polar bear tissues, and over-hunting of some populations in Canada, Greenland, and Russia.“ Center for Biological Diversity. (2005). Before the secretary of the interior: Petition to list the polar bear (ursus martimus) as a threatened species under the endangered species act. [Tucson]: fromhttp://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/polar_bear/pdfs/15976_7338.pdf

  7. The Issues • Science: Sea ice is primary polar bear habitat. There is compelling evidence of sea ice reduction • Public Perception: Polar bears as emblem of effects of climate change • Politics: First time global warming is given as a reason for a species being threatened • Social Justice: Effect on Nunavut economy and traditional lifestyle

  8. The Science • 22 000 to 25 000 polar bears in the world • Two thirds in Canada, mostly Nunavut • Predictions on polar bear populations vary: • "May decline 30% over the next 50 years" • "Will stop producing cubs within 30 years" • "Will be extinct within 30 years" • Why?: Polar bears depend on sea ice for hunting. Sea ice is melting.

  9. "Warmer temperatures are thinning ice sheets off Arctic coastlines, shrinking the bears' hunting grounds and hampering breeding. Roughly 15,000 of the world's 22,000 to 25,000 polar bears live on Canadian soil, while Alaska is home to about 4,700." • Lackner, Chris. "U.S. may call polar bear endangered: Move seen as sign global warming threat is finally being taken seriously". Edmonton Journal,28 December 2006. p A4. • “The world’s polar bears are distributed in 19 sub-populations over the Arctic. The total number of polar bears around the world is thought to be less than 25,000.” • George, Jane. "Arctic warming threatens polar bears, scientists warn," Nunatsiaq News, July 15, 2005. http://www.nunatsiaq.com/archives/50715/news/nunavut/50715_06.html

  10. Ice-dependent polar bear populations will drop more than 30 per cent over the next 45 years if global warming continues to affect the Arctic region. IUCN Red List, 2006 The impact of climate change is increasingly felt in polar regions, where summer sea ice is expected to decrease by 50 to 100 per cent over the next 50 to 100 years. Schliebe, S. Wiig, Ø., Derocher, A. & Lunn, N. 2006. Ursus maritimus. In: IUCN 2007. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.iucnredlist.org.

  11. "The United States is proposing listing the polar bear as an endangered species, marking the first time the Bush administration has suggested climate change could be responsible for threatening an animal with extinction.” • Lackner, Chris. "U.S. may call polar bear endangered: Move seen as sign global warming threat is finally being taken seriously". Edmonton Journal, 28 December 2006. p A4.

  12. “Polar bear trophies from Nunavut could be banned from the United States, crippling the territory’s annual polar bear sports hunt, if information isn’t released soon about the traditional knowledge that was used to establish new quotas and management plans for the species. The sports hunt brings about $1 million into Nunavut every year.“ • George, Jane. " Polar bear sport hunt under threat from U.S." Nunatsiaq News, July 15, 2005. http://www.nunatsiaq.com/archives/50715/news/nunavut/50715_01.html

  13. Librarian Role on the Research Team • Help to select individual newspapers to target • Determine indexing and fulltext access for each publication • Construct the search • Identify effective method to share data entry • Participate in coding of articles

  14. The Sources Anchorage Daily News Edmonton Journal Globe and Mail LA Times National Post New York Times Nunatsiaq News Toronto Star Washington Post Audit Bureau of Circulations Canadian Newspaper Association Nunatsiaq News Ulrich’s

  15. The Search in Factiva (polar bear or polar bears or nanuk or nanook or nanuq or nanuuq or wapusk or nannuraluk) and (climate change or global warming or emissions or consumption or greenhouse gas or greenhouse gasses or ecology or ecological or conservation or pollution or endangered or threatened or Species at Risk Act or Endangered Species Act or Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada or COSEWIC or International Union for Conservation of Nature or IUCN or Inuit or Eskimo or Inupiat or Inuvaluit or Cree) not Knut not Kunik not summer camps  Sources: Anchorage Daily News Or Edmonton Journal Or The Globe and Mail (Canada) Or Los Angeles Times Or National Post Or The New York Times Or The Toronto Star Or USA Today Or The Washington Post - Print and Online Date range: 01/01/2004 to 04/20/2008 Search for free-text terms in: Full article Exclude: Republished newsRecurring pricing and market dataObituaries, sports, calendars...

  16. The Search in Nunatsiaq News (using Google) ("polar bear" OR "polar bear") AND ("climate change" OR "global warming" OR emissions OR consumption OR endangered OR threatened OR "Species at Risk Act" OR "Endangered Species Act" OR "Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada" OR COSEWIC)

  17. Coding and Group Communication Coding Tool: Survey Monkey Recording comments on the coding process: skrbl

  18. Results: Distribution of Articles

  19. Results: When and Where

  20. Inuit Portrayal in all Sources 55% Token Mention Victim Guilty party Not Mentioned Victim Influential Marginal Aware Naive Other

  21. Results: Inuit Portrayal by Source

  22. Alaska Climate Impact Assessment Commission Alaska Conservation Foundation Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission Alaska Inter-Tribal Council Alaska Nanuuq Commission All Russian Institute of Nature Conservation American Meteorological Society Arctic Climate Impact Assessment Arctic Institute of North America Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (Alaska) Aurora Research Institute Canadian Arctic Shelf Exchange Study (Lead scientist: Fortier) Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences Canadian Wildlife Federation Canadian Wildlife Service Center for Biological Diversity COSEWIC Environment Canada Greening Earth Society Greenland Home Rule Government Greenpeace Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives International Polar Year International Union for Conservation Of Nature Inuvialuit Game Council Inuvialuit Wildlife Management Advisory Council Mantoba Conservation Department Meteorological Service of Canada NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) – US (Colorado) National Park Service Natural Resources Defence Council Polar Bear Specialist Group of the World Conservation Union - 1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears. Polar Bears International Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (Eureka, Ellesmere Island) Renewable Energy for Alaska Project Trustees for Alaska U.S. Environmental Protection Agency U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Marine Mammal Management Program U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Interior Department Ursus International World Conservation Union World Meteorological Organization World Wildlife Fund Agencies

  23. Summary of all results • Governance Emphasis • Role of Climate Change • Declines in Polar Bear Numbers and Climate Change Arguments • Victim(s): Whose Values are Being Deprived? • Perpetrator(s) / Protagonist(s): what is the cause of the deprivation of values? • Prescriptive solutions proposed • Representative anecdote: What is the story line? • Truth source

  24. What’s Next? • Expand content analysis to other types of popular press, other jurisdictions • Investigate prevailing message of the articles: • Polar bears angles were often added to articles in a supporting role for primary messages of climate change or sea ice loss is occurring • An overwhelming portrayal of polar bears being threatened by loss of arctic ice

  25. Questions??

  26. Canadian Legislation • May 14: Memorandum of Understanding between US Fish & Wildlife Service and Ministry of the Environment “for the conservation and management of polar bear populations shared by the U.S. and Canada” • COSEWIC and SARA

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