The media sector is fast-moving, and so are the social and environmental challenges it faces. As a group we keep abreast of developments, both through our own research and that published by others.
This guide, created by the BBC, covers a wide and extensive range of climate change topics as well as information on nature and biodiversity. Its purpose is to provide accurate information on the featured topics, based on the best scientific evidence available. There are references and hyperlinks throughout to support the content. The finished guide will have six sections, and at present, the following are published: the problem: what the science tells us; solutions and policy debates; biodiversity; BBC editorial policy considerations; glossary.
The Book Chain Project is a collaborative project run by Carnstone, which involves 27 leading book and journal publishers, over 400 print suppliers, and more than 300 paper manufacturers. Their tools help publishers to make informed buying decisions and they cover three areas: forest sourcing, chemicals and materials and labour and environment. The Design Guide aims to help all actors involved in the design decision making process to make informed decisions about the materials and / or processes they are using. It covers a number of different materials and processes and scores them based on their environmental and health & safety or labour impact, as well as their recyclability.
Zero Tolerance is a Scottish charity working to end men’s violence against women and girls (VAWG). They promote gender equality and challenge the beliefs and structures that contribute to normalising violence and abuse. Zero Tolerance proactively works with the media and they have a variety of resources that can help journalists and editors to ensure their reporting on violence against women is both accurate and sensitive: they have published two media guidelines, one for print and one for broadcast. These guides were highlighted by Laura Bates, in her Q1 2023 talk on the topic of online safety, and particularly violence against women online.
This report analyses how the public’s trust in the government, media, NGO and businesses have changed in the last 20 years. It highlights that cooperation and collaboration across these 4 institutions are key to increasing overall trust levels. The report covers five megatrends: trust inequality; government trails business in trust; the assault on truth; networks of trust; the rise of fears. As societies become increasingly dependent on social media as a primary source of information, the subsequent epidemic of fake news, scepticism and gullibility is on the rise. It delves into this topic in more detail, warning us all that we risk heading towards a ‘two-tier’ world, where those that cannot afford to access trustworthy news sources will be trapped in an ‘information desert’.
Black professionals in film and TV face ongoing barriers and inequalities, even once they’re ‘in the door'. There are nearly 40 pain points that they must endure throughout the entire content journey, from talent or idea discovery to the release of the film or TV series. Black talent is also severely underrepresented in executive decision-making roles throughout the industry: 87% of TV executives and 92% of film executives are white. This research 'reveals the barriers that Black talent in the film and TV industry faces, the economic fallout, and solutions for creating a more inclusive, equitable workplace'.
The third in a trilogy of reports, which delves into the question of how well “Climate Change” fared against other terms on TV in 2020. Albert analysed a year’s worth (2020) of subtitling data, excluding news, from BBC, Sky, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and UKTV. The report found that mentions of climate change reduced by 10% (from 2019-2020) and global warming decreased by 19%. The report also investigates how empowering the presentation of climate change is for viewers: collectively, the terms climate change, climate emergency and climate crisis received over 14.5k mentions whilst climate justice, climate action and climate solution only received 296 mentions. Chris Taylor, Director of albert, says that whilst 2020’s extraordinary events partially explain these trends (increased reruns and archive shows, new ways of working), the TV industry must tackle climate change and the content should help viewers to visualise a path ahead.
This report identifies the most material issues facing media companies from an investor's point of view. It highlights the issues of trust, freedom of expression, security and privacy, press ethics, environmental impact, intellectual property issues and content diversity as major influences on investment decisions.
This report presents presents a critical view on advertising, arguing that it promotes and normalises a range of behaviours, attitudes and values, many of which are socially and environmentally damaging. It then calls on the advertising industry and its clients to take responsibility for demonstrating that the impacts of commercial advertising are benign, and to support precautionary measures until such time as this is demonstrated.
Weathercocks and Signposts critically reassesses current approaches to motivating environmentally-friendly behaviour change. The report argues that motivations which are intrinsic (e.g. relating to personal growth, emotional intimacy or community involvement) are more likely to lead to pro-environmental behaviour than those that are extrinsic (e.g. relating to of acquisition of material goods, financial success, image and social recognition).
This short paper, a joint publication between WWF-UK and SustainAbility, takes a look at how a select group of media and entertainment companies measure up in their efforts to be accountable for their influence on society and introduces the concept of the 'brainprint.'