Environmental Organizations’ Litigation Communication in the Polarized U.S Political Landscape

Presenter Information

Rachel Anderle, Butler University

Document Type

Oral Presentation

Location

Indianapolis, IN

Subject Area

Communication & Media Studies

Start Date

13-4-2018 9:30 AM

End Date

13-4-2018 10:15 AM

Description

According to the Pew Research Center, the two major political parties are more ideologically separated now than at any other point in history (DeSilver, 2014). In that politically polarized reality, environmental issues have become more partisan, and many environmental nonprofit organizations are working to strengthen and enforce environmental laws and regulations. This study analyzes environmental litigation communication in an increasingly polarized political context. Specifically, this project analyzes environmental organizations’ communication strategies and messages related to their litigation efforts in order to better understand how environmental nonprofits frame environmental litigation within the current U. S. political landscape (i.e., moral frames, social frames). Multiple data sources triangulate the study’s data collection by providing multiple perspectives. For example, data include organizations’ controlled communication and collateral found on their websites as well as their social media communication via Twitter. Interview data provide context and internal strategic perspectives on organizations’ environmental litigation communication efforts. Data collection and analysis are ongoing and iterative in line with the qualitative research approach of Miles, Huberman, and Saldana in Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook. This approach consists of data condensation, data display, and drawing and verifying conclusions. Preliminary results show that nonprofit organizations like the National Resources Defense Council and Sierra Club use a variety of frames that portray litigation as a righteous action used to hold those in power to account, targeting not only large corporations but also the Environmental Protection Agency currently run by the Trump administration.

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Apr 13th, 9:30 AM Apr 13th, 10:15 AM

Environmental Organizations’ Litigation Communication in the Polarized U.S Political Landscape

Indianapolis, IN

According to the Pew Research Center, the two major political parties are more ideologically separated now than at any other point in history (DeSilver, 2014). In that politically polarized reality, environmental issues have become more partisan, and many environmental nonprofit organizations are working to strengthen and enforce environmental laws and regulations. This study analyzes environmental litigation communication in an increasingly polarized political context. Specifically, this project analyzes environmental organizations’ communication strategies and messages related to their litigation efforts in order to better understand how environmental nonprofits frame environmental litigation within the current U. S. political landscape (i.e., moral frames, social frames). Multiple data sources triangulate the study’s data collection by providing multiple perspectives. For example, data include organizations’ controlled communication and collateral found on their websites as well as their social media communication via Twitter. Interview data provide context and internal strategic perspectives on organizations’ environmental litigation communication efforts. Data collection and analysis are ongoing and iterative in line with the qualitative research approach of Miles, Huberman, and Saldana in Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook. This approach consists of data condensation, data display, and drawing and verifying conclusions. Preliminary results show that nonprofit organizations like the National Resources Defense Council and Sierra Club use a variety of frames that portray litigation as a righteous action used to hold those in power to account, targeting not only large corporations but also the Environmental Protection Agency currently run by the Trump administration.