This study tests the effect of the environmental movement, political opportunities, and media attention on air pollution in a time-series analysis (1959-1998). It examines changes in national emissions of five types of air pollution: sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and volatile organic compounds (combined into an index with Cronbach’s α = .904); nitrogen oxides; and particulate matter smaller than 10 µm. Results show that media attention to the environment is an important predictor of all three dependent variables. Additionally, the environmental social movement is only effective given specific political opportunities, namely, Democratic Party control of the federal government, media attention to environmental issues, and effective policy. The environmental movement also only appears to be effective at combating highly visible pollutants that are on the political agenda. This study demonstrates the complexity of air pollution, the importance of media attention, and the limited impact of the environmental movement on real-world outcomes.
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