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Climate Change Communication in Australia: The Politics, Mainstream Media and Fossil Fuel Industry Nexus

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Book cover Handbook of Climate Change Communication: Vol. 1

Part of the book series: Climate Change Management ((CCM))

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to analyse the relationships between the Australian fossil-fuel industry, politicians and the news media as a prerequisite for understanding the limits and opportunities for climate change communication in Australia. The dominance of the fossil-fuel industry in Australian society is deeply entrenched, demonstrated by a largely unchallenged discourse about their necessity in the mainstream media, and the role they play in funding the election campaigns of the two largest political parties. This paper draws on the theoretical tradition of political economy to argue that there is a well-defined fossil-fuel industry–political elite–mainstream media nexus, that shapes the reporting of climate change and the policies set by successive Australian governments. Australia has compelling reasons to undertake urgent and effective action on climate change. Yet, as this chapter argues, it is Australia’s exposure to extreme weather events that has ensured a consistently high level of public concern for climate action. Remarkably, public support for strong action on climate change continues to build, including as a defining issue in elections. This is despite a highly concentrated mainstream media that is largely hostile to climate science and emissions reduction initiatives.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Kevin Rudd won the leadership of the ALP back from Julia Gillard in a challenge on 26 June 2013.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Media, Film and Journalism, Monash University, PO Box 197, Caulfield East VIC 3145, Clayton, Australia

    David Holmes

  2. Flinders Government, College of Business, Government and Law, Flinders University, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia

    Cassandra Star

Authors
  1. David Holmes
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  2. Cassandra Star
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cassandra Star .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. HAW Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. Department of Forestry and Management of the Environment and Natural Resources, Democritus University of Thrace, Orestiada, Greece

    Evangelos Manolas

  3. Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Anabela Marisa Azul

  4. Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal

    Ulisses M. Azeiteiro

  5. University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom

    Henry McGhie

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Holmes, D., Star, C. (2018). Climate Change Communication in Australia: The Politics, Mainstream Media and Fossil Fuel Industry Nexus. In: Leal Filho, W., Manolas, E., Azul, A., Azeiteiro, U., McGhie, H. (eds) Handbook of Climate Change Communication: Vol. 1. Climate Change Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69838-0_10

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