Resilience or Eco Terrorism? Why Visual Framing of Climate Activism Matters

From halted traffic to orange-sprayed paintings, climate civil disobedience relies on eye-catching acts to highlight the urgency of climate change action. But while visuals can amplify the message, controversy may undermine support. The negative news framing of such activism across Europe weakens its political impact. Activists thus turn to visual social media platforms to reclaim their narrative. 
This presentation examines whether activist communication on Instagram offers more effective framing than traditional news. Using a cross-country comparison of visual coverage from Italy, Germany and the UK during May 2023, this presentation shows that while news framing is surprisingly uniform, Instagram posts by activists emphasise resilience, sacrifice and hope. To whom do these differences in the visual framing of climate activism matter, and in what ways?

Delia Dumitricia, PhD, Associate Professor in Digital Activism and Political Communication, Erasmus University Rotterdam