Managing carbon emissions: A discursive presentation of ‘market-driven sustainability’ in the British media

The article studies discursive (re)construction of market-based solutions to climate change through the use of so-called ‘carbon compounds’-lexical combinations of at least two roots such as carbon footprint – in the UK national newspapers between 1990 and 2009. Applying techniques of corpus-assisted discourse analysis, compounds are identified and grouped according to their frequency and chronological appearance. The analysis then focuses on (1) finance compounds used between 1990 and 2005 and (2) compounds modified by low-, zero- carbon and carbon neutral which became popular after 2005. It is argued that the representation of market-based initiatives with the help of carbon compounds has restricted the debate on climate change mitigation scenarios by relying on calculation and monetization of emissions as the starting point.

► Analysis of lexical patterns in media discourse on climate change between 1990 and 2006.
► Marketplace solutions to the global warming issue.
► Metaphors as framing devices in public discourse.