Written submission from Dr Doug Specht (EIF0125)
Proposal for Parliamentary Inquiry:
The Interplay Between Media and Climate: Potentials and Perils
Dr Doug Specht, University of Westminster
The climate crisis is among the most urgent challenges of the 21st century. How societies understand, discuss, and react to climate change is irrevocably shaped by media, whether traditional journalism, digital platforms, or emergent AI-powered technologies. This inquiry proposes to interrogate and advance policy interventions on two intertwined axes: (1) the positive capacity of media to foster effective climate communication and empower action, and (2) the negative environmental footprint of an increasingly digital, data-hungry media ecosystem. Recognising these dualities is critical for harnessing media’s full potential in the net-zero transition, while mitigating its own climate impacts.
Why This Inquiry Matters
Media is often described as the "fourth estate", not only holding power to account, but also shaping social norms, perceptions of risk, and civic agency. Well-crafted climate communication is now vital for public awareness and governmental legitimacy, especially as climate-related events become more frequent and severe. Yet, as the media landscape is transformed by automation, algorithmic personalisation, and digital platforms, there are emerging sustainability risks and ethical dilemmas. Together, these factors underscore the necessity of a holistic examination that stretches beyond questions of content, to include infrastructure, innovation, and accountability.
I. Media as a Catalyst for Effective Climate Communication
A. Empowering Agency Through Solution-Focussed Approaches
The public appetite for climate news is demonstrable, but engagement can be hindered by the dominance of "crisis" or "apocalypse" frames. Research shows such discourse may induce eco-anxiety and paralysis, rather than motivating positive action (Denisova, 2025). Effective climate communication should, therefore, foreground actionable solutions and empower citizens with clear pathways to change; from collective political interventions to local community resilience. Solution based journalism and constructive narratives are emerging modes that not only describe problems, but offer thoroughly-researched answers, guiding audiences towards sustainable choices (Specht, 2025; Denisova, 2025).
Recent French media practice, for example, evidences a paradigmatic shift. Instead of relegating extreme weather to isolated stories, French broadcasters explicitly frame such events as symptoms and consequences of anthropogenic climate change, contextualising them within policy debates and adaptation efforts (Specht, 2025). This not only personalises risks for viewers, but leverages storytelling to showcase collective ingenuity and resilience, fostering a sense of hope and agency.
B. Localisation, Context, and Climate Literacy
UK and global media have historically struggled to bridge the gap between global climate narratives and local realities, resulting in "delocalisation" that disengages those most affected or at risk. Connecting global crises to local stories develops a sense of relevance and preparedness within communities. Regional journalism, such as interventions by Carbon Brief and local outlets in France, exemplifies how geographical nuance and place-based reporting catalyse behavioural change and adaptation.
Climate literacy among journalists and media practitioners is another pressing need. Universities play a unique role in this ecosystem: embedding climate reporting into curricula, and forging partnerships with scientists, NGOs, and community stakeholders (Specht et al., 2025). This approach enables the next generation of journalists to understand climate science, translate complex data for lay audiences, and critically examine policy and technological responses. Without this capacity-building, gaps in reporting will persist, risking misinformation and missed opportunities for engagement.
C. Social Media, Movements, and New Forms of Collective Action
Social media platforms, despite their environmental costs, offer transformative support for environmental movements, such as Fridays for Future and Extinction Rebellion. Rather than traditional hierarchical organisation, these movements leverage hashtags, images, and loose networks to mobilise and demonstrate solidarity across disparate geographies (Specht & Kavada, 2022; Specht & Snyder, 2021). The decentralisation enabled by digital media allows multiple entry-points for activism, helping movements grow and adapt quickly to changing circumstances.
Crucially, however, research finds that social media’s most substantial impact may not be through event coordination or top-down messaging, but as a space for demonstrating mass participation and amplifying diverse, overlapping stories of harm and urgency. This shift enables broader coalitions, linking local struggles to larger systemic causes, and driving momentum even in the absence of formal organisation (Specht & Kavada, 2022; Kavada & Specht, 2022).
D. Popular Culture, Film, and the Psychology of Risk
Media, including film and television, regularly shapes cognitive and emotional responses to climate risk. Yet, apocalyptic narratives of disaster can be double-edged, sometimes lulling the public into a false sense of security by offering escapist or reassuring conclusions (Specht & Angeli, 2021). These cultural frames can desensitise audiences, diminishing their sense of urgency or obscuring collective responsibility. On the other hand, industry-led sustainability initiatives such as BAFTA Albert are working to change this dynamic by encouraging and supporting climate-conscious content creation. BAFTA Albert provides resources and certifications for sustainable production, as well as guidance for integrating environmental messaging into mainstream entertainment. By foregrounding climate issues in popular programming and working with creators to drive narrative change, schemes like BAFTA Albert have significant potential to reshape public understanding, influence risk perception, and inspire political will. An inquiry should therefore examine both the psychological impacts of apocalyptic storytelling and the emerging role of cultural institutions such as BAFTA Albert in fostering climate-literate, solution-oriented media.
II. The Environmental Footprint of Digital Media and AI
A. Hidden Costs: Energy, Data, and Digital Consumption
While media has unparalleled reach in climate advocacy, its infrastructure can undermine wider sustainability goals. The data-intensive nature of social media, streaming services, and emergent AI engines produces significant carbon emissions (Specht, 2022). Streaming an entire series online can generate high levels of emissions, and daily social media use has been shown to leave carbon footprints equivalent to hundreds of road miles per user (Specht, 2022).
Beyond consumer habits, the energy required to power digital companies' data centres and operations remains a major concern. Although some platforms, such as Facebook, claim "carbon neutrality," many use renewable energy at scales that strain local power infrastructures (Specht, 2022).
B. AI and Automated Media
The rise of AI-driven content production and distribution, including generative models and recommendation algorithms, has amplified digital consumption trends. Breakthroughs in language modelling, video generation, and personalisation promise greater relevance, but require increasing compute power and storage capacity, with associated emissions. Furthermore, cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based media platforms may consume more energy than mining certain metals, compounding the need for systemic reform (Specht, 2022).
Policy and regulatory intervention is needed to incentivise the shift to renewables, discourage emission-intensive data practices, and encourage degrowth strategies in the tech sector. Without these, digital media technologies risk exacerbating energy demand and undermining collective progress towards climate targets.
C. Misinformation, Blame, and Diffusion of Responsibility
Digital media can also perpetuate harmful narratives, shifting blame for collective climate crisis onto individuals. Coverage of disasters sometimes focuses on discrete human actions, such as viral stories blaming a gender reveal party for California wildfires, while obscuring broader systemic drivers like fossil fuel extraction and global heating (Specht, 2020). Disinformation, algorithmic bias, and commercial pressures further cloud public debate, making urgent, coordinated action more difficult.
D. Equity and Access: The Global Digital Divide
The digital divide also demands scrutiny. A majority of the world’s population is still without reliable internet access, yet the wealth and emissions of the tech sector are heavily concentrated in Global North economies (Specht, 2022). Consideration must be given to how media interventions both enable and exclude, ensuring that digital sustainability does not reinforce inequities or marginalise those already most impacted by climate change.
Areas for further inquiry
A. Reforming Media Regulation and Technology Policy
Exploration around how Government can work with industry, media regulators, and civil society to:
B. Supporting Behavioural Change and Public Engagement
Explore empowering the public, including:
C. International Leadership and Collaboration
Britain has an opportunity to lead by example in international media governance, setting best practice in reporting standards, digital sustainability, and networked climate communication. Partnerships should be forged with universities, industry bodies, and multilateral organisations, supporting the development and dissemination of climate literacy and data-driven innovation worldwide.
Conclusion
The relationship between media and climate is dynamic, complex, and crucial to the fate of our societies. Media can support the effective communication of climate risk and response, serve as a tool for public empowerment, and provide the narratives necessary for political will. However, its own environmental impacts, technological transformations, and capacity to mislead or distract must be challenged.
Further inquiry should examine both dimensions, investigating the positive leverage of media in the climate transition, and addressing the rising harms of data- and AI-driven consumption. Through inclusive evidence gathering, policy innovation, and multi-stakeholder dialogue, the UK can ensure media fulfils its highest purpose in the age of climate crisis.
References
Denisova, A. (2025). Three Recommendations for Effective Climate Communication. MediaWell [Online]. Available from: https://mediawell.ssrc.org/articles/three-recommendations-for-effective-climate-communication/
Kavada, A. and Specht, D. (2022) ‘Environmental Movements and Digital Media’, In Grasso, M. and Giugni, M. (eds.). The Routledge Handbook of Environmental Movements. Routledge. Pages 538-551.
Specht, D., Denisova, A., & Lirette, M. (2025). It’s up to universities to embed climate literacy in the next generation of journalists. Times Higher Education [Online]. Available from: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/its-universities-embed-climate-literacy-next-generation-journalists
Specht, D. (2025). How French media is reshaping its coverage of extreme weather. Geographical [Online]. Available from: https://geographical.co.uk/science-environment/how-french-media-is-reshaping-its-coverage-of-extreme-weather
Specht, D. (2022). Climate change: why tech companies must address emissions caused by streaming and scrolling. The Conversation [Online]. Available from: https://theconversation.com/climate-change-why-tech-companies-must-address-emissions-caused-by-streaming-and-scrolling-187676
Specht, D. & Kavada, A. (2022). Social media can support environmental movements – but not in the way you might think. The Conversation [Online]. Available from: https://theconversation.com/social-media-can-support-environmental-movements-but-not-in-the-way-you-might-think-177847
Specht, D. & Angeli, S. (2021). Apocalyptic films have lulled us into a false sense of security about climate change. The Conversation [Online]. Available from: https://theconversation.com/apocalyptic-films-have-lulled-us-into-a-false-sense-of-security-about-climate-change-165837
Specht, D. and Snyder, C. (2021) ‘The self(ie) in the Anthropocene’, In Harper, E. T. and Specht, D. (eds.). Imagining Apocalyptic Politics in the Anthropocene. Routledge (Environmental Humanities). Pages 158-172.
Specht, D. (2020). California wildfires: why a gender-reveal party got the blame, but shouldn’t have. The Conversation [Online]. Available from: https://theconversation.com/california-wildfires-why-a-gender-reveal-party-got-the-blame-but-shouldnt-have-146033
Biography
Dr. Doug Specht is a Chartered Geographer, a Reader in Cultural Geography and Communication, and Head of the School of Media and Communication at the University of Westminster. His research explores themes related to environmental justice, human rights, and access to education, with a focus on the production and codification of knowledge though cartographic artefacts and in educational settings.