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Climate Emergency on Visual Social Media. The Representation of the Environment According to Italian Climate Movements

Social Movements
Qualitative Comparative Analysis
Social Media
Climate Change
Communication
Mixed Methods
Narratives
Activism
Costanza Azzuppardi
Scuola Normale Superiore
Costanza Azzuppardi
Scuola Normale Superiore

Abstract

Research on environmental communication has expanded significantly over the years, highlighting the importance of understanding how environmental issues are communicated (Doyle 2007; Corner and Randall 2011; Anderson 2014; Wang et al. 2017; Hansen 2018) and the public perceives them (Chapman et al. 2016). Recently, scholars have focused on the use of visuals in social movements, examining how visual expression and representation contribute to these movements (Doerr, Mattoni, Teune 2013; Doerr and Mattoni 2014; Doerr et al. 2014; Fagerholm et al. 2023). However, little has been said about the social movements’ strategic visualisation of issues.  This research aims to compare the visual strategies employed by two distinct Italian climate movements to uncover how environmental topics are addressed through different visual narratives. The analysis will incorporate recent advancements in visual analysis and environmental communication, exploring how these movements leverage visual media to frame their causes and inspire action.  Indeed, the investigation followed a triangulation of methods: expert interviews, visual content analysis and narrative analysis. During the interviews, experts explained how communication management works by addressing specific aspects: structure, who decides the narrative, the targeted audience and, lastly, the communication goals. In doing so, it was possible to understand the logic and the movements’ expertise in communication. The visual content analysis contributed to understanding how social actors narrate themselves and the world through online content considering both the object of study -images and texts- as explicit and implicit linkages to a larger political story. Results show that although similar in goals and issues, movements' visual expressions differ over time in communicating topics. In particular, the findings showed that movements thematise claims and issues dissimilarly. The same applies to environmental representation, even though it remains central to their request. In the visual expression on social media, environmental communication shifted away from the traditional Greenpeace images of polar bears, melting icebergs and such. Instead, the number of references to the environment decreased but steadily maintained their relevance in those movements’ identities. However, movements differ in the representation of the environment as part of claims or identity. For example, through the years, XR’s use of environment connotates their identity thanks to the amusement of naturalistic icons in the communication of movement events.