Environmental Culture in Venezuelan Press: A Study to the Newspapers El Nacional and El Universal (2000 & 2004)

The objective of Environmental Journalism is the distribution and exhibition of environmental news and information, as long as –according to theorists- it contributes with an environmental culture. This last term could be defined as the knowledge, aptitudes, and values that citizens have about the Environment, as a sociocultural and natural space. The objective of this research is to analyze the environmental culture in two Venezuelan newspapers (El Nacional and El Universal) during 2000 and 2004. For this purpose we used the categories suggested by Aveces (2003) and we studied the journalism genres placed on these media, as well as the explanation of scientific concepts. In 2000, both of the newspapers dedicated most of the environmental information to (i) pollution, (ii) natural disasters, (iii) waste, and (iv) rains. The main source was the Government. We noticed that causes and consequences were barely explained, and the information seldom offered a solution to environment damage. In 2004, we observed a similar media behavior, but other topics were included like (i) extinction, (ii) environmental policy, (iii) global warming, and (iv) Lemna sp. Also there were included news and reports about fauna and flora. We concluded that media in Venezuela are increasing the number of environmental information with elements that could favor environmental culture of readers.