Practitioner Perspectives on Arctic Marine Mammals in Environmental News Reporting

Abstract

Advance Online Article first published September 2024. Page numbers not final

The conservation and environmental policy literature suggests that featuring charismatic megafauna or flagship species—large animals with which humans are fascinated—in environmental communications helps to raise awareness and create public and political support for the protection of ecosystems or species. While a considerable body of literature is dedicated to such species, scholars have paid comparatively little attention to the human practitioners creating these flagship-based communications. To fill the literature gap, this article draws on agenda-setting theory and empirical evidence concerning the Arctic—the fastest-warming region on Earth—and its charismatic marine mammals. Through interviews and informal conversations with journalists, researchers, and policy-makers, the study asks 1) why these practitioners contribute to flagship-based news coverage, 2) how they interact with other practitioners in this process, and 3) how they view the content of the news coverage. The article highlights practitioners’ motivation to harness human fascination with Arctic marine mammals to draw attention to broader environmental issues, most notably the climate crisis. At the same time, the article outlines trends in flagship-based news coverage that practitioners perceived as problematic, including the representation of polar bears, human perspectives, and different systems of knowledge. Practitioners also discussed challenges hindering accurate and nuanced Arctic environmental news reporting, including budget, personnel, and time constraints. Through its analysis of first-hand practitioner accounts, the article provides valuable insights and practical information for researchers, journalists, and policy-makers seeking to engage with and improve environmental news reporting concerning Arctic marine mammals, as well as related conservation efforts.