Wild boars in the streets: applying a socio-scientific issue framework to analyze news items

ABSTRACT

This study combines the fields of science communication and science education. It focuses on the ways the media covered the wild boars’ invasion into the city of Haifa in Israel, their hazards and the policy of the city. We identified the problem as a socio-scientific issue (SSI) according to science education literature, and investigated the extent to which the media refers to features of SSI. We analyzed 424 news-items published in local and national media during 2019–2022. Findings show that although most SSI features, such as presenting the conflict, suggesting solutions, consulting with experts etc., appear in the media reports, their use is not systematic and occasionally it is simplistic. Differences between local and national media were inconsistent, with some SSI features appearing more in the national ones and others in the local. Levels of complexity were indistinctive as well. In conclusion, we suggest that journalists should be aware of SSIs characteristics and address them in their reporting to better engage the public with such environmental and societal issues.

KEYWORDS:

• Socio-scientific issue
• controversial issues
• media framing
• media literacy
• science journalism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).