Report accuses U.K. media of indulging in global-warming “porn”
The first comprehensive analysis of climate-change coverage in the U.K. media has deemed it “confusing, contradictory, and chaotic.” Produced by the Institute for Public Policy Research, the report, “Warm Words,” accuses media outlets of presenting apocalyptic pictures and portents as a kind of “climate porn” to sell copies. Trouble is, just as coverage of the problem is grandiose and scaremongering, coverage of solutions tends to be picayune and infantilizing. “The style of climate-change discourse,” says communications consultant Solitaire Townsend, “is that we maximize the problem and minimize the solution.” In contrast to pictures of melting glaciers and mega-hurricanes — which the report says amount to a “counsel of despair” — efficient light bulbs and commuter bikes can seem somewhat trivial. We propose that all media outlets choose porn names. We call dibs on Gristi Lix. We love you long time!
