Elements that condition the newsworthiness of the main milestones on climate issues: analysis of El País and El Mundo

Abstract

This work aims to establish under what newsworthiness criteria the media have incorporated the Climate Summits and the publication of the IPCC Reports into their agenda. The coverage of climate change carried out by El País and El Mundo is analyzed, comparing the main news milestones on climate issues in recent years: Climate Summits (COP24, COP25, COP26, COP27) and IPCC Partial Reports using the content analysis methodology. It is observed that the space and relevance given to these pieces is greater in El País, being in both cases dependent on Organizational Communication, especially Public Relations activities. Activism, proximity and controversy –classic newsworthiness criteria– are identified as key elements in the mentioned coverage. It is determined that climate change continues not to be regularly incorporated into the media agenda, with unequal coverage depending on the media and editorial trends.