A dangerous space? Unpacking state and media discourses on the Arctic

Vodka on ice? Unveiling Russian media perceptions of the Arctic

“…However, little work has been done to investigate how the government's ambitious strategies and global economic and political trends are reflected in Russian mass media. In Wilson Rowe's study of Russia's media discourse on the Arctic in the widely read newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta, she demonstrated that media coverage framing the Arctic as a zone for cooperation rather than conflict grew steadily during 2008-2011, so that by 2011 articles with a conflict-oriented tone had almost disappeared [25]. No studies have been identified that sought to identify the topic structure of Russian media coverage on Arctic-related issues.…”

Articulating state identity: ‘Peopling’ the Arctic state

“…Media has thrived on headlines of record low sea ice-covers, flag plantings, undiscovered petroleum promises, an Olympic torch relay, and starving polar bears, to mention but a few events that have brought the Arctic to southern audiences (e.g. Nyman, 2012;Wilson Rowe, 2013;Steinberg, Bruun and Medby, 2014;Woon, 2014). These are events that have also contributed to what is now a vibrant academic field of critical polar geopolitics (see Bruun and Medby, 2014;Powell and Dodds, 2014;Steinberg, Tasch and Gerhardt, 2015;Depledge, 2016;Keil and Knecht, 2017a).…”

Theorising the Thaw: Geopolitics in a Changing Arctic

“…Contemporary Arctic geopolitics is often framed in terms of possible futures, with pundits either welcoming a coming bonanza or warning against impeding catastrophe (Arbo et al ; Wilson Rowe ). Such narratives are often set in a region that has been perceived as literally ‘frozen in time’ until recently, when it gradually began melting into the realm of ‘normal’ politics (Steinberg et al ).…”

“…As the Arctic is once again attracting international attention, albeit for different reasons, the idea of impending geopolitical conflict in the North has fuelled the imaginations of the world press. The popular media is an important source of spatial discourse (Boykoff ; Sharp ), and news stories from around the world have been rife with sensationalist headlines proclaiming the coming of another ‘cold’ war (pun presumably intended) as states supposedly ‘race for resources’ (Steinberg et al ; Wilson Rowe ; Woon ).…”

“…Arctic governance consists of a complex patchwork of institutions, which contribute to the construction of the Arctic as a distinct geopolitical region (Keskitalo ; Knecht and Keil ). Despite the impression sometimes created by the popular media (see Steinberg et al ; Wilson Rowe ), as well as representatives of the littoral states (for an oft‐cited example of this, see the Ilulissat Declaration ()), Arctic governance reaches far beyond the influence of the five coastal states (Shadian ). Numerous institutions at different levels have come to play a role in Arctic governance – supranational organisations, states, NGOs, research institutes, indigenous peoples' organisations, etc.…”