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Wind Energy in US Media: A Comparative State-Level Analysis of a Critical Climate Change Mitigation Technology.
- Source :
- Environmental Communication; Jul2009, Vol. 3 Issue 2, p168-190, 23p, 3 Charts, 5 Graphs
- Publication Year :
- 2009
-
Abstract
- Wind power is a critically important climate change mitigation technology, and the most rapidly growing renewable energy technology in the USA. Wind energy can provide carbon-free electricity generation, so within societal discourse on how society should minimize the risks of climate change it is widely recognized and acknowledged as a valuable technology. Despite recent increases in wind turbine installation in the USA, the high-level of variation in deployment patterns of wind technology in different states cannot be explained simply by wind resource patterns. Other factors, including differences in the state-level, socio-political context, seem to be influencing wind development. This research compares these contextual differences by using media analysis to assess state-level public discourse about wind technology. Through comparative content and frame analysis of newspaper coverage of wind power in Texas, Minnesota, and Massachusetts, we explore state-level variations in the salience of wind in public discourse, the focus on wind power as a climate change mitigating technology, and the framing of wind power's risks and benefits. In addition to identifying distinct state-level variation in wind energy discourse, the results demonstrate that wind's climate change mitigation potential has been a limited but growing part of media coverage on wind power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- WIND power
MASS media
CLIMATE change
RENEWABLE energy sources
GREEN technology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 17524032
- Volume :
- 3
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- Environmental Communication
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 41539618
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1080/17524030902916640