Media Reliance and Public Images of Environmental Politics in Ontario and Michigan

Abstract

Knowledge and images of environmental issues depend in part on the type of media to which one is exposed, according to a cross-national survey reported here. A mail survey showed that, in general, respondents in Michigan saw more conflict in environmental issues than did a sample from Ontario. Canadian respondents focused more on the issues themselves. In both countries, those who relied mainly on television for environmental news were less likely to hold purely ideological positions on the environment, but Canadian newspaper readers were inclined to be ideological. In Michigan, those who took environmental cues from friends or politicians were most likely to be ideological.