The Role of Communication Media in Socio-Environmental Conflicts. Insights from the case of the Basque Country

• Izaro Gorostidi ^[1] ; Andere Ormazabal Gaston ^[1] ; Guillermo Gurrutxaga Rekondo ^[1]
  1. [1] Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

     Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

     Leioa, España

     
• Localización: Trípodos, ISSN-e 2340-5007, ISSN 1138-3305, Nº. 55, 2024 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Artificial Intelligence and Communication. Opportunities and challenges), págs. 143-160
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • In recent decades, certain environ-ment-related issues have come into the public eye. This article aims to analyse socio-environmental conflicts from both a democratic and a commu-nication policy perspective. Given that these socio-environmental conflicts are the response to public policies, this article seeks to study the role played by the media in shaping them. The study focuses on the Basque Country, where many socio-environmental con-flicts arise due to the implementation of public environmental policies. The methodology includes quantitative analysis using the data obtained from conducting a press analysis, and a qualitative approach using information obtained from in-depth interviews and the analysis of documentation. The re-sults suggest a communicational and democratic deficit in the socio-envi-ronmental conflicts analysed, since the media do not help to build public opin-ion in a dialogical and dialectical way. To address this, we need a more diverse field of communication beneficial for environmental issues, so that we can work on information, considering the perspectives of all actors and the main topics of discussion. Environmental is-sues should go beyond traditional rep-resentative policies, inviting a broader range of actors in debates