Ink And Influence: The Role of Media on Climate Policy Understanding

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the role of media (including cinema) on the CO2 emission levels of The United States of America (USA). Employing three co-integration methods, namely Canonical Co-Integrating Regression (CCR), Dynamic Least Squares (DOLS), and Fully Modified Least Squares (FMOLS), within the framework of Environmental Kuznet Curves (EKC) theory, we unravel the impact of media coverage on the USA’s carbon footprint. Utilizing Climate Policy Uncertainty index (CPU), extracted from prominent USA newspapers as a main concern, the analysis reveals a noteworthy outcome indicating media coverage pertaining to environmental issues, pollution, and climate changes emerges as a contributing factor in the reduction of CO2 emissions. The study also uses income per capita, renewable energy consumption and foreign direct investment as additional metrics of air pollution. The findings not only shed light on the influential role of media in shaping environmental outcomes but also offer valuable insights to policy makers and governors.

Keywords

• cinema
• media
• newspaper
• CO2 emission
• climate policy
• EKC