Environment, Social Justice, and the Media in the Age of Anthropocene addresses three imminent challenges to human society in the age of the Anthropocene. The first challenge involves the survival of the species; the second the breakdown of social justice; and the third the inability of the media to provide global audiences with an adequate orientation about these issues. The notion of the Anthropocene as a geological age shaped by human intervention implies a new understanding of the human context that influences the physical and biological sciences. Human existence continues to be affected by the physical and biological reality from which it evolved but, in turn, it affects that reality as well. This work addresses this paradox by bringing together the contributions of researchers from very different disciplines in conversation about the complex relationships between the physical/biological world and the human world to offer different perspectives and solutions in establishing social and environmental justice in the age of the Anthropocene.
Introduction / Dobbins, Manca, Piga
Section 1: Defining the Anthropocene
Ch 1. Humanity in/of the Anthropocene: An Anthropological Perspective / Branca, D.
Ch 2. The Anthropocene. A Socio-Anthropological Perspective / Ferreri, E.
Ch 3. The model of deliberative democracy for the Anthropocene. From Jürgen Habermas to John Dryzek / Romero, J.
Ch 4. The Land Ethic in Light of the Divine Economy / Kloos, J.
Section 2: Ethical and Social Implications of the Anthropocene
Ch 5. Ethics and Responsibility in the Anthropocene Era / Mannu, G.
Ch 6. MacCurdy, M.Justice, the Media, and the Power of Dissent
Ch 7. Second Lives/Second Chances: Promoting Social Inclusion / Piga, M.L.
Ch 8. From Modernity to Risk. Local Print Media Portraying Military Activity / Esu & Maddanu
Section 3: Media Interpretations of the Anthropocene
Ch 9. Consequences of Postmodernism / Dell’ultri, M.
Ch 10. When Tribalism Trumps Science: The Role of Media in a Counterfactual Era / Dobbins, E.
Ch 11. Rhetoric of Denial: Framing the Apocalypse in Mainstream, Denialist, and Social Media / Kauth, J.M.
Ch 12. A Smog of Lies: The Media, The Environment and the Post-Truth Presidency of Donald Trump / Macek, S.
Section 4: Spreading the Message in the Anthropocene
Ch 13. Journalism Education and the Environment in the Age of Anthropocene / Manca, L.
Ch 14. Racism, Fascism, and Leftist Movements in American Popular Music / Seely, P.
Ch 15. Ecomusicology: Examining Environmental Messages Within Modern Music / Challey & Seely
Section 5: Tradition for the Future of the Anthropocene
Ch 16. Tradition can save the Future of Nature: biocentric view of Law / Perra, L.
Ch 17. Cultural Heritage of Ethnobotany: Statements of Principle and Effectiveness / Camarda, I.
Ch 18. From the Global History to the Singleness and Uniqueness of the Territories / Francioni, F.
Ch 19. The Global and Utopian Empire of Alexander the Great: First Attempt at a United World / Montero, J.
About the Contributors
Elizabeth G. Dobbins is a professor of biological and environmental sciences at Samford University. Maria Lucia Piga is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Sassari. Luigi Manca is a professor of communication arts at Benedictine University.
"Drawing on a diverse range of fields and approaches, this intellectually rigorous essay collection takes the Anthropocene debate beyond discussions of humanity's past to tackle the realities of our present and strategies for our future. This is an essential work for those who wish to understand both our current environmental crisis and the ways our socio-political institutions are failing to confront it."
– Erin Stewart Mauldin, University of South Florida