From smog alerts to climate justice: new media narratives for environmental health awareness

This study examines how digital storytelling practices across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and mobile platforms are used to communicate environmental health risks in Mexico City, Bogotá, and São Paulo. Using a mixed-methods design that combines a qualitative content analysis of 50 digital campaigns (2022–2024) with 25 semi-structured interviews with health communicators, NGO activists, and policymakers, the study analyzes dominant narrative strategies and patterns of engagement observed across campaigns. The analysis identifies the prevalence of emotionally resonant, culturally grounded, and justice-oriented narrative approaches, particularly those centered on personal testimonies, and examines how these strategies are evaluated by expert actors involved in environmental health communication. Rather than assessing audience effects or behavioral outcomes, the findings highlight expert perceptions of the communicative potential and limitations of different storytelling practices. While narrative-driven campaigns are described as highly visible and engaging, expert evaluations point to persistent challenges related to institutional integration and continuity, which may constrain their long-term impact. By integrating perspectives from digital storytelling, participatory communication, and climate justice, the study proposes an analytical framework for understanding how new media narratives are strategically deployed in environmental health advocacy in Latin America.