Angus Jones – 3658552
RMIT University | Bachelor of Communications (Media) 2020 | Climate Changing Media Assessment 3: Performing the Changing Climate
Prompt 7:
Taking into account our modern day anthropence, climate change has definitely become a forefront to a vast majority of the Australian public’s knowledge due to publicized events in the media: including children skipping school in December 2018 to protest directed at the government a ‘call to action’, the more recent Australian bushfires and the affect that’ll hold on the environment and the rise in popularity of environmental activists like Greta Thunberg. This awareness is excellent for this pandemic making people have an emotional investment over the topic and talking about it, but is it too much? Has this topic been so recycled or recurring in the media that we’ve become desensitized to it?
Paul Barkley’s an ABC podcast presenter, who interviewed a socialist researcher Rebecca Huntley earlier this year which it’s revealed that in opinion polls Australians list climate change as one of their top concerns yet there’s still no consensus on how to respond. She says, “it’s almost as if the people who answer the surveys aren’t the same people who answer in elections.” [1] She continues by explaining the difference between multiple surveys conducted between the years 2007 to 2019, in which the survey system shows the increased concern about climate, saying that 59% of Australians agreed that global warming is a serious problem about which we should begin taking steps now to resolve, despite the cost; for it then to dramatically lose interest in people based on living conditions, education and age, as typical more people living in rural areas are more focused on demographic and economy based concerns rather than environmental.
Now I’m not saying specifically that it’s communities living in rural towns that are against environmental preservation, but statistics have shown that those who have completed their education are showing more concern towards climate change based topics. Beyond typical contemporary climate media used to inform the audience of the facts and statics about our environment, perhaps there is a way that government authorities or environmental enthusiasts could communicate the urgency of this topic to those interested in the topic by using different forms of communication. Could using different language, framing your discussion and understanding your audience better make a difference?
Rose Hendricks, a candidate in Cognitive Science at the University of California, released an article Discussing climate change: focus on the framing not just the facts [2], discussing the importance of calculating your and framing your work in relation to climate media. Towards the later end of her article, Hendricks discusses a scenario where psychologists testing 3,000 people online to read two short fictional news articles in which they are the same text, but with slight metaphorical changes: “One refering to ‘war against’ … the other ‘race against’.” [3] After which the readers answered a series of questions, involving action to engage in pro-environmental behaviour and the results where in agreement with scientific evidence show it is real and caused by our Anthropence. Hendricks highlights the importance of language and the context in which specific words surround themselves may cause your readers, viewers or audience to take action.
[1] Why are we so divided on Climate Change? Rebecca Huntley ABC Podcast Wed 29th of Jan 2020 3:30 – 4:00 minutes. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bigideas/why-are-we-so-dvided-on-climate-change/11898456
[2] Rose Hendricks article https://theconversation.com/communicating-climate-change-focus-on-the-framing-not-just-the-facts-73028
[3] Rose Hendricks article https://theconversation.com/communicating-climate-change-focus-on-the-framing-not-just-the-facts-73028 article 3 Let me rephrase lines 12-13.
RMIT Angus Jones – 3658552
University | Bachelor of Communications (Media) 2020 | Climate Changing Media Assessment 3: Performing the Changing Climate
Prompt 8:
When I began reading into Timothy Morton’s theory on hyperobjects, I initially found the his concept overwhelming as the shear scale of his theory was so immense to me that I found it a little bit intimidating; It wasn’t really until I read through more of the class readings, in particular Rose Hendricks’s article and Rebecca Huntley’s podcast, piece where I started to find some inspiration for my choice of hyerobject and the concept in which to explore.
So my plan for the moment is to create a collection of Foley sound effect recordings, and be able to combine those together to create a story or to share a message. My reasoning behind why I am interested in making a purely audio based media is that I am fascinated in testing my own media creative ability pushing me out of my comfort zone; but also to attempt to create content that is less traditional that a majority of news outlets on the topic of climate change.
In Hendricks’s piece when she discusses of speaking about metaphors, I started to write down common metaphors or objects that immediately spring to mind when thinking about climate change media, coming to my decision of plastic bottles. In her piece she stresses the framing of language when presenting climate media to the public by presenting a case study of a group of psychologists who conducted a survey presenting 2 articles; both the same the only difference is that one discusses the ‘war against climate’ while the other the ‘race against climate.’ After which the survey suggests that those who read the ‘war’ climate article where more inclined to pro-environmental behaviours. From this I wish to recreate that same response in my media-making project, but instead of using it as a promotional use of pro-climate based activities I’d would use it to re-shape the negative perception that surrounds plastics bottles in contemporary media.
I would also like to create an emotional investment or stakes to my media making idea as Rebecca Huntley addresses in her piece with ABC. After spending some time with the Yale Program on Climate Change, Huntley discusses the American public’s beliefs, behaviours, and motivations even voting patterns where represented into 6 different categories: Alarmed, concerned, cautious, disengaged, doubtful and dismissive. Continuing on Huntley, says that we need to increase the alarmed cohort by developing their skills of talking to others not of the same mindset. But also to provide social and emotional support as many of them – and many of us – struggle with feelings of grief, dread and anger about what’s happening to our planet and the response to many of our political leaders. I like this idea of supporting people emotionally with my media making idea, by using a familiar and common item that everyone has had one in their possession at some stage of their lives.
Angus Jones – 3658552
RMIT University | Bachelor of Communications (Media) 2020 | Climate Changing Media Assessment 3: Performing the Changing Climate
Prompt 9:
Cristina’s presentation explores the hyperobject of Fast Fashion in particular focusing on the cotton farming industry, and how the large-scale production of clothing is a contributing negative factor to global climate change. Considering the lack of public knowledge of this particular topic, I felt she presented an excellent array of stats to emphasis the environmental affect that this industry is having on our world but also the urgency conducted by her research say that it’s the second largest polluter in the world second to oil.
I also was interested in the point she made about tying us to the actual person who has created the clothing, this untouchable connection that we share which ties, I thought well, into Timothy Morton’s hyperobject theory that they can be viscous, which means that they ‘stick’ to beings that they are involved with and have a connection with; similar to my idea for my media project. She continues on with this broadening the scope of her point by saying that we all wear clothes, and how prevalent it is in our own lives.
When Cristina did start discussing the actual content she wanted to put into her short film, because it is a large topic she wanted to show the process of certain aspects of cotton including the farming, the production into clothing etc. I think it’ll be difficult to source footage of clothing without getting a shot of the brand involved. Perhaps there is a way you could demonstrate that differently could you have a visual metaphor? An object that represents a person, place, thing or idea by means of a visual image that suggests a particular association or point of similar interest.
Presentation – Powerpoint presentation