Local Media Construction Of An Global Environmental Issue

The environmental issue is not only a scientific problem, but also a social problem. Most researchers have regarded environmental issue just as a scientific problem, and discussed how to report it accurately and accessibly. In this article environmental issue is supposed as a social problem, and considered that is constructed by media or other cultural mechanism, just like any other social problems. Then, how does mass media construct environmental issue, especially how does local media construct global environmental issue? This is a basic question in this article. I would analyze reports about The Kyoto Protocol in Chinese People Daily and American New York Times, and try to answer: 1.What they incline to define the protocol. 2. Which frame strategy they use, and what can influence their selective using. 3. Whether their reports can make for globalizational environmental awareness, or just intensify the differences between selves and the others. By using of Frame Theory and part of Critical Linguistics, some conclusion can be reached: Firstly, two of them trend to define the protocol as a political topic; Secondly, Their reports can be influenced by political standpoint, news value, traditional environmental viewpoint, newspaper's character and so on. And these influences can be reflected in their frame. Last but not the least, two of them construct the warming crisis, and can enhance a common awareness about crisis. However, they also construct differences between tow countries, so it can disturb the globalizational environmental awareness.