https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7869-5613
![Sample our Information Science journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5940/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Communication-Studies.jpg"})
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to investigate the relationship between news sources and climate change attitudes among students at Adeleke University and its implications on libraries. The study utilized a descriptive survey design with a questionnaire to collect data from 688 respondents. The majority of the participants showed an unconcerned attitude towards climate change. The sources from which students obtained climate change news were NTA, AIT, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Cable News Network (CNN), TVC News, and Punch. It was found that sourcing climate change news from specific local and international news outlets such as Fox News, Al Jazeera, Euro News, Sky News, CNBC Africa, Channels, AIT, Vanguard, Nigeria Tribune, Guardian Nigeria, Silverbird Television, TVC News, Arise News, and NTA was strongly associated with an unconcerned attitude towards climate change. The study concludes that libraries should provide more news sources that can raise awareness about climate change in Nigeria to address the prevalent unconcerned attitude towards climate change.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1. IPCC, “AR5 Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability,” 2014, https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg2/.
2. John S. Dryzek, Richard B. Norgaard, and David Schlosberg, The Oxford Handbook of Climate Change and Society, The Oxford Handbook of Climate Change and Society (Oxford University Press, 2011), https://doi.org/10.1093/OXFORDHB/9780199566600.001.0001.
3. Dagmawi M. Abegaz and Padraig Wims, “Extension Agents’ Awareness of Climate Change in Ethiopia,” The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension 21, no. 5 (October 20, 2014): 479–95, https://doi.org/10.1080/1389224X.2014.946936.
4. Mouhamadou Bamba Sylla, et al., “Projected Robust Shift of Climate Zones over West Africa in Response to Anthropogenic Climate Change for the Late 21st Century,” Climatic Change 134, no. 1 (January 1, 2016): 241–53, https://doi.org/10.1007/S10584-015-1522-Z.
5. A. Abdulkadir, A. Maryam Lawal, and T. I. Muhammad, “Climate Change and Its Implications on Human Existence in Nigeria: A Review,” Bayero Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences 10, no. 2 (May 9, 2018): 152–58, https://doi.org/10.4314/bajopas.v10i2.26.
6. Nebedum Ekene Ebele, Nnaemeka Vincent Emodi, and Alessandro Pezzoli, “Climate Change and Its Impact in Nigerian Economy,” Journal of Scientific Research and Reports 10, no. 6 (May 22, 2016): 1–13, https://doi.org/10.9734/JSRR/2016/25162.
7. Anabela Carvalho, “Media(Ted)Discourses and Climate Change: A Focus on Political Subjectivity and (Dis)Engagement,” Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change 1, no. 2 (March 1, 2010): 172–79, https://doi.org/10.1002/WCC.13.
8. Hong Tien Vu, Yuchen Liu, and Duc Vinh Tran, “Nationalizing a Global Phenomenon: A Study of How the Press in 45 Countries and Territories Portrays Climate Change,” Global Environmental Change 58 (September 1, 2019): 101942, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.GLOENVCHA.2019.101942.
9. National Science Board, “S&E Indicators 2016,” National Science Foundation, 2016, https://www.nsf.gov/nsb/publications/2016/nsb20161.pdf.
10. Karen Akerlof, et al., “Communication of Climate Projections in US Media amid Politicization of Model Science,” Nature Climate Change 2, no. 9 (May 20, 2012): 648–54, https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate1542.
11. Maxwell T. Boykoff, “Media Discourse on the Climate Slowdown,” Nature Climate Change 4, no. 3 (February 26, 2014): 156–58, https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2156.
12. “Promoting the Transfer and Development of Climate-Smart Energy Technologies in Uganda,” Encyclopedia of the World's Biomes 5–5 (January 1, 2020): 216–27, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.12401-7.
13. BNRCC, “National Adaptation Strategy and Plan of Action on Climate Change for Nigeria (NASPA-CCN)” (Springer, 2011), https://csdevnet.org/wp-content/uploads/NATIONAL-ADAPTATION-STRATEGY-AND-PLAN-OF-ACTION.pdf.
14. Stuart Capstick, et al., “International Trends in Public Perceptions of Climate Change over the Past Quarter Century,” Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change 6, no. 1 (January 1, 2015): 35–61, https://doi.org/10.1002/WCC.321.
15. Toby Bolsen and James N. Druckman, “Counteracting the Politicization of Science,” Journal of Communication 65, no. 5 (October 1, 2015): 745–69, https://doi.org/10.1111/JCOM.12171.
16. Evelyn Tagbo, “Media Coverage of Climate Change in Africa: A Case Study of Nigeria and South Africa | Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism” (UK, 2010), https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/our-research/media-coverage-climate-change-africa-case-study-nigeria-and-south-africa.
17. Eric Merkley and Dominik A. Stecula, “Party Elites or Manufactured Doubt? The Informational Context of Climate Change Polarization,” Science Communication 40, no. 2 (March 20, 2018): 258–74, https://doi.org/10.1177/1075547018760334.
18. Leaf Van Boven, Phillip J. Ehret, and David K. Sherman, “Psychological Barriers to Bipartisan Public Support for Climate Policy,” Perspectives on Psychological Science 13, no. 4 (July 1, 2018): 492–507, https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617748966.
19. Matthew J. Hornsey and Kelly S. Fielding, “A Cautionary Note about Messages of Hope: Focusing on Progress in Reducing Carbon Emissions Weakens Mitigation Motivation,” Global Environmental Change 39 (July 1, 2016): 26–34, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.GLOENVCHA.2016.04.003.
20. Benjamin J. A. Walker, Tim Kurz, and Duncan Russel, “Towards an Understanding of When Non-Climate Frames Can Generate Public Support for Climate Change Policy,” Environment and Behavior 50, no. 7 (July 7, 2017): 781–806, https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916517713299.
21. Xiaoquan Zhao, et al., “Climate Change Education Through TV Weathercasts: Results of a Field Experiment,” Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 95, no. 1 (January 1, 2014): 117–30, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-12-00144.1.
22. P. G. Giménez and M. H. Pedreño, “The Social Image of Libraries in the Digital and Written Press,” Information Science Journal 5 (2002): 177–96, https://revistas.um.es/analesdoc/article/view/2161.
23. Abaobi Agbo, Christian Ugwuanyi, and Onyinye Ekere, “Sources of Library Information Needs for Climate Change Adaptation among Rural Farmers in South Eastern Nigeria,” Library Philosophy and Practice (e-Journal) (January 1, 2022), https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/6959.
24. Blessing C. Onu, “Using Newspapers to Satisfy the Information Needs of Readers at the Federal Polytechnic Library Nekede Owerri,” Nigerian Library Link 3, no. 1&2 (2005): 84–96, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Blessing-Onu/publication/344072982_USING_NEWSPAPERS_TO_SATISFY_THE_INFORMATION_NEEDS_OF_READERS_AT_THE_FEDERAL_POLYTECHNIC_LIBRARY_NEKEDE_OWERRI/links/5f50fb2f458515e96d275145/USING-NEWSPAPERS-TO-SATISFY-THE-INFORMATION-NEEDS-OF-READERS-AT-THE-FEDERAL-POLYTECHNIC-LIBRARY-NEKEDE-OWERRI.pdf.
25. Nigerian Finder, “Full List of Nigerian Newspapers – Online & Offline,” 2017, https://nigerianfinder.com/nigerian-newspapers/.
26. Adebowale Jeremy Adetayo, Augustine I. Enamudu, and Folashade Munirat Lawal, “Exploiting Virtual Realities for Library Serial Services to Nigeria Disabled Patrons,” Library Philosophy and Practice (e-Journal) (January 1, 2021), https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/6494.
27. E. Madukoma, “Users’ Perception of Electronic Reference Services in Babcock University Library, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria,” IFLA, 2015, http://library.ifla.org/1302.
28. Chris LeBeau, “Libraries and Local News: Expanding Journalism, Another User Service Grounded in Reference | LeBeau | Reference & User Services Quarterly,” 2018, https://www.journals.ala.org/index.php/rusq/article/view/6698/8999.
29. Sarah Sax, “Why Investing in Libraries Is a Climate Justice Issue,” Next City, October 4, 2021, https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/why-investing-in-libraries-is-a-climate-justice-issue.
30. LivingKnowledgeblog, “Libraries and a Brighter Climate Future,” November 3, 2021, https://blogs.bl.uk/living-knowledge/2021/11/libraries-and-a-brighter-climate-future.html.
31. See note 27 above.
32. AFDB, “Climate Change in Africa,” African Development Bank, 2019, https://www.afdb.org/en/cop25/climate-change-africa.
33. See note 13 above.
34. A. Galadima and A.M. Lawal, “Climate Change Situation in Zamfara State: Farmers’ Awareness and Agricultural Implications,” Chemistry and Materials Research 9, no. 8 (2017): 7–11, https://www.iiste.org/Journals/index.php/CMR/article/view/38210.
35. Bridie Scott-Parker et al., “Pacific Islanders’ Understanding of Climate Change: Where Do They Source Information and to What Extent Do They Trust It?” Regional Environmental Change 17, no. 4 (June 27, 2016): 1005–15, https://doi.org/10.1007/S10113-016-1001-8.
36. Albert Bandura, “Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change,” Psychological Review 84, no. 2 (March 1977): 191–215, https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191.
37. Gernot Wagner and Martin L. Weitzman, Climate Shock: The Economic Consequences of a Hotter Planet (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2015), https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691159478/climate-shock.
38. Erin Mead, et al., “Information Seeking About Global Climate Change Among Adolescents: The Role of Risk Perceptions, Efficacy Beliefs, and Parental Influences,” Atlantic Journal of Communication 20, no. 1 (January 2012): 31–52, https://doi.org/10.1080/15456870.2012.637027.
39. Riley E. Dunlap, “Climate Change Skepticism and Denial: An Introduction,” American Behavioral Scientist 57, no. 6 (February 22, 2013): 691–98, https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764213477097.
40. Toby Bolsen, James N. Druckman, and Fay Lomax Cook, “How Frames Can Undermine Support for Scientific Adaptations: Politicization and the Status-Quo Bias,” Public Opinion Quarterly 78, no. 1 (January 1, 2014): 1–26, https://doi.org/10.1093/POQ/NFT044.
41. Ibid.
42. Dorothee Arlt, Imke Hoppe, and Jens Wolling, “Climate Change and Media Usage: Effects on Problem Awareness and Behavioural Intentions,” International Communication Gazette 73, no. 1 (January 6, 2011): 45–63, https://doi.org/10.1177/1748048510386741.
43. See note 7 above.
44. Ibukun Italoye, “Top 10 Best TV Stations in Nigeria,” Nigerian Infopedia, December 9, 2019, https://nigerianinfopedia.com.ng/top-10-best-tv-stations-in-Nigeria/.
45. “Nigeria,” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 2021, https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2021/Nigeria.
46. Adaugo Isaac and Chris Roper, “Nigeria,” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 2021, https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2021/nigeria.45.
47. Ijeoma D. Ajaero and Luke I. Anorue, “Newspaper Framing and Climate Change Mitigation in Nigeria and Ghana,” African Population Studies 32, no. 2 (September 27, 2018): 4228–38, https://doi.org/10.11564/32-2-1195.
48. Lauren Feldman, et al., “Climate on Cable: The Nature and Impact of Global Warming Coverage on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC,” The International Journal of Press/Politics 17, no. 1 (November 2, 2011): 3–31, https://doi.org/10.1177/1940161211425410.
49. Peter Elias and Ademola Omojola, “Case Study: The Challenges of Climate Change for Lagos, Nigeria,” Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 13 (April 1, 2015): 74–78, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COSUST.2015.02.008.
50. Jon A. Krosnick and Bo MacInnis, “Frequent Viewers of Fox News Are Less Likely to Accept Scientists’ Views of Global Warming,” Grist.Org, 2010, https://grist.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/global-warming-fox-news.pdf.
51. Lee Ahern and Melanie Formentin, “More Is Less: Global Warming News Values on Fox Compared to Other U.S. Broadcast News Outlets,” Electronic News 10, no. 1 (February 8, 2016): 45–65, https://doi.org/10.1177/1,931243116628513.
52. Lauren Feldman, P. Sol Hart, and Tijana Milosevic, “Polarizing News? Representations of Threat and Efficacy in Leading US Newspapers’ Coverage of Climate Change,” Public Understanding of Science 26, no. 4 (July 30, 2015): 481–97, https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662515595348.
53. Ralf Barkemeyer, et al., “Media Coverage of Climate Change: An International Comparison,” Environment and Planning C 35, no. 6 (September 1, 2017): 1029–54, https://doi.org/10.1177/0263774X16680818.
54. See note 8 above.