Communicating Climate Science: A Matter of Credibility : Swedish Farmers' Perceptions of Climate-Change Information

In the climate change communication literature, the concept of framing is increasingly used to discuss various understandings of climate change. This paper addresses the under-researched question of how specific audiences perceive the adequacy of various climate change frames, by exploring how Swedish farmers make sense of climate change information. Based on focus group discussions with farmers, the paper explores what communicators, or frame articulators, Swedish farmers perceive as central and how farmers judge the credibility of potential frame articulators in climate change communication. The paper discusses 1) the credibility of frame articulators as a matter of perceived independence and impartiality, 2) empirical credibility—whether farmers were able to verify the claims underlying climate change frames—as a matter of practical experience versus analytical reasoning, and 3) frame consistency, i.e. whether climate change frames correspond to audience beliefs and claims