I will be presenting research on visual social media during the 2015 Paris climate talks (COP21), a collaboration with Luis Hestres (University of Texas at San Antonio), at the 2017 International Conference on Social Media and Society at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada July 30 (http://socialmediaandsociety.org). The conference is organized by the Social Media Lab at Ryerson. Research summary: Within networked, digital media spaces, new news platforms are reconfiguring traditional news production norms through hybrid cultural practices, giving rise to new paradigms of journalism. There is an increased emphasis on transparency and accountability, as well as interaction with audiences. At the same time, Internet-mediated activism allows individuals to foster larger, more diverse networks of weak ties, thus opening new avenues for advocacy communication. Climate change is increasingly becoming the backdrop to news stories on topics as varied as politics and international relations, science and the environment, economics and inequality, and popular culture. We use the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) that took place in Paris from November 30 to December 11, 2015, as a case study. The project focuses on COP21 coverage by British news outlet The Guardian, which launched a fossil fuel divestment campaign "Keep it in the Ground" in advance of COP21. We compare The Guardian's discussion of 'climate solutions' during COP21 with other news outlets and climate stakeholders. The work-in-progress paper is available through ACM at: https://goo.gl/h38fYo.

1. Dr. Jill Hopke
(@jillhopke)
and Dr. Luis
Hestres
(@luishestres)
Social Media
and Society
2017
THE PARIS CLIMATE
TALKS (COP21) IN
VISUAL SOCIAL MEDIA

2. Journalism
as climate
activism.
2
THE
GUARDIAN
AND THE
“KEEP IT IN
THE
GROUND”
CAMPAIGN

3. 195
nations
agree to
limit global
greenhouse
gas
emissions
with
voluntary
targets.
3
COP21
NOV. 30 TO
DEC. 12,
2015

4. @jillhopke and @luishestres 4
CLIMATE SOLUTIONS IN VISUAL SOCIAL
MEDIA
Past research shows visuals of climate solutions are
important in audience perceptions of climate change and
for encouraging action.
We ask:
• How do the Guardian’s COP21 visual
tweets compare to other
stakeholders?

5. @jillhopke and @luishestres 5
12 CLIMATE STAKEHOLDER CATEGORIES
Guardian Movement organizations
Left-leaning news Individual activists
U.S. publications Multinational Institutions and
Scientific Organizations
Climate Publishers Network (CPN) Multinational Representatives /
Scientific Experts
Other UK publications Fossil Fuel Industry / Trade
Associations
Individual journalists Other Environmental Organizations

6. @jillhopke and @luishestres 6
CLIMATE SOLUTIONS CODING
FRAMEWORK
Nation-state contributions-
International Treaty
Nuclear
Procedural - International Treaty Personal Behavioral Change
Outcomes - International Treaty Transparency (Climate Risk and
Financial)
Non-treaty International Climate Science/Research
Clean Energy and Efficiency No Solution
Fossil Fuel-based Solutions Not Applicable

7. By climate
stakeholder
category,
Nov. 21 to
Dec. 20,
2015
@jillhopke and @luishestres 7
VOLUME OF
COP21
VISUAL
TWEETS

8. 8
Climate Solutions by Climate Stakeholder Category
χ2 (df=121, N=9,477)=3986.991, p=.000. Cramer’s V=.196, p=.000.

9. Climate
Justice
9
THE
GUARDIAN

10. Climate
Justice
10
MOV’T
ORGS

11. Procedural
– Treaty
11
US NEWS

12. Nation-state
contribution
– Treaty
12
FOSSIL
FUEL
INDUSTRY

13. Outcomes
– Treaty
13
MULTI-
NATIONAL
ORGS

14. @jillhopke and @luishestres 14
METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES TO CONSIDER
• Machine vs. human coding of visuals
o Challenge of visualizing abstract concepts
• Holistic coding of text + visuals
o What about cases when text and visuals vary in
theme?
• Posts removed from native environment in
which audiences view/interact with

15. @jillhopke and @luishestres 15
WHAT’S NEXT?
• Effects of U.S. President Donald Trump’s
announcement of pending withdrawal
from Paris Accord
o International commitment to agreement
o Cities and states stepping-up on U.S. climate action
o Better understanding of fossil fuel industry /
supporters visual messaging needed

16. WIP paper
available:
https://
goo.gl/h38fYo
QUESTIONS?
THANK YOU!
DR. JILL HOPKE (JHOPKE@DEPAUL.EDU)
AND DR. LUIS HESTRES
(LUIS.HESTRES@UTSA.EDU)