The Nexus Between COVID-19 and Climate Change in US Newspapers: A Content Analysis

Recently, the topic of COVID-19 has been discussed profusely in conjunction with climate change in the media. This study explores how US print newspapers cover the nexus between climate change and COVID-19 from 2020 to 2022. It applies framing and issue-attention cycle theories in the context of multiple intersecting risks through a nexus lens. Findings from the content analysis (N = 397) demonstrate that unlike the separate coverage of the two issues, on the nexus, the media demonstrated a two-cycle model of issue attention. While climate change and COVID-19 used to be politized in the media when being reported separately, the nexus between the two issues was framed primarily as a scientific issue and framed primarily with human interest. Although the overall tone became increasingly positive over time, most of the articles featured the COVID-19-climate change nexus in a negative way. Findings regarding the coverage of nexus, though not necessarily representing audiences' perceptions of the two issues, clearly indicate that nexus perspective provides another novel way of broadening and interpreting framing and issue attention theories, as well as the communication on climate change and COVID-19 in the US media.