Poster: Alternative Media Counterbalancing Mainstream Media? Alternative Media as Distributors of a ‘Sense of Urgency’

Investigating climate change frames in various media outlets, we contend that alternative media represent the issue in a distinct way from mainstream media. Given that most studies focus on the mainstream ('elite') press, this finding adds to a more balanced insight concerning the media affecting, or distorting, public opinions and policies.

Framing studies, including our own preliminary research, demonstrate that different media types and outlets prefer divergent frames. For instance, broadsheets yield more techno-optimistic and political economic frames, compared to tabloids (more human interest or small actions). Factors like journalistic routines, ideologies or interests influence the particular materialization of frames.

However, despite their interesting position, alternative media have received hardly any research. Characteristic of these outlets, such as the Flemish (leftist) website 'De Wereld Morgen' (DWM), are their non-commercial background, attempt to transform social roles and routines, and/or cooperation with social interest groups and citizen journalists. These characteristics seem to feed, among others, into morality and alarmist frames, thus evoking a sense of urgency.

Conducting an inductive qualitative framing analysis (informed by literature), we compare a corpus comprising climate change articles published in DWM and three Flemish mainstream newspapers (a tabloid, a leftist and a centrist broadsheet) (period 2012-2014).