ABSTRACT
Media play a major role in shaping narratives about the Arctic region and are part of making it a new frontier for exhibitions of geopolitical power. Media content reflects the vast impacts of climate change in the north and the wide interest in the region’s resources but often neglects to cover stories about people living in the region. Media coverage is interlinked with the political economy of media in its various forms, as well as global realpolitik. In recent years, online news outlets based on collaboration among journalists across the circumpolar north have begun to create a new context for mediation. Furthermore, increased access to the Internet and use of social media have provided people in the north with venues for making their voices heard. This chapter provides an overview of mainstream media content and a description of how the media landscape is changing, as well as a description of the changes in the technological infrastructure necessary for Internet access. It also includes a discussion on the geopolitical implications of the media and mediation and materialities that are generated by media technologies more widely.
