University of Leeds, School of Modern Languages and Cultures
Abstract
This essay examines how social media (Twitter and LiveJournal blogging platforms) cover climate change issues in Russia. Russia is one of the largest greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters in the world and has become a key player in global climate change politics. At the national level the problem has largely been ignored until a few years ago when the Russian government announced a more defined climate change policy. Traditional mass media coverage of climate change, even though it follows changes in state policy, has substantially increased, y et still falls far behind discussions taking place in other states. This essay investigates whether, due to the reserved approach of traditional media to this environmental topic, social media can become an alternative information channel for climate change debates
