10 NOVEMBER 2021
(...) It’s become increasingly clear that numerous Western outlets have more journalists here than many entire countries, sometimes significantly so. Access and exclusion have been huge stories at COP26—some of the countries most immediately threatened by the climate crisis were unable to send their leaders, never mind activists and concerned citizens—for reasons ranging from cost to COVID to both. There are excellent journalists from the Global South on the ground here (indeed, I featured some of their work in my dispatch for CJR on Tuesday) and many more covering COP remotely; many Western journalists, meanwhile, have shone a spotlight on very vulnerable countries, both in their coverage and during live events such as those at the Climate Hub. Still, as far as physical representation goes, media is very clearly part of the broader, highly unequal trend.
