Environmental and social issues and the media game: Four ways to address mediated (in)visibility

Many of the causes and impacts of environmental and social issues may seem invisible, while others are apparent yet overlooked. Journalists act as focal agents shaping how society addresses these issues, including climate change and social inequality. In this article, we investigate how journalists act as visibility agents – that is, agents who make visible such issues in the media, culture, and society more generally. Drawing on interviews with Nordic journalists, this exploratory qualitative study shows how journalists address the (in)visibility of environmental and social issues in four primary ways: uncovering wrongdoing, moderating false and inadequate information, explaining complex social/environmental topics, and popularizing issues. The study advances literature on mediated visibility and the relationships between journalists and political and economic leaders by explaining how the former approach the task of visibilizing environmental and social problems.