This study examines relationships between local temperature in two cities (New York and Washington, D.C.) and coverage of global climate change in their local newspapers (the Times and the Post). The results show that there are some relationships between local temperature and frequency of attention to climate issues, such that journalists are more likely to discuss climate during unusually warm periods. However, support for the hypotheses was only partial; the Post did not show confirming relationships. The discussion focuses on implications for public understanding of climate change.
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Mean temperature = (high + low)/2.
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In New York, the average yearly temperature from long-term records is 53.1°F; our data from the seven-year sample are higher, because the years in our sample have been warmer than normal. Similarly, in Washington D.C., the long-term average is somewhat lower than our reported average (54°).
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Autoregression is the tendency, in time series data, of a value to be related to previous values.
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