Two recent studies of very different nature report a “lack of information” on a key challenge of the 21st century. ^century  International news coverage is dominated by recurring manifestations of climate change and, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, by the issue of energy sovereignty. In this complex global context, media coverage of two major topics, energy and climate, remains marked by the weight of disinformation.

Fossil fuels and disinformation

Newsback, a company specializing in media monitoring, provides a quantified report thanks to its barometer of topics related to disinformation in the French media published in May 2023. The analysis, carried out by the Tagaday platform, covers 5,400 news programs broadcast between January 1 ²⁰¹³  and 31 March 2023 by 410 television and radio stations, as well as 3,000 print and online print media. It is clear that different energy sources do not receive equal media attention. The subject of two-thirds of all energy articles, fossil fuels – oil and gas – receive far more attention than nuclear or renewable energy. Oil and gas are also the two energy sources whose media coverage is most marred by misinformation, and with no visible improvement between 2013 and 2022. (Francoise Laugee)