A content analysis from 153 years of print and online media shows positive perceptions of the hellbender salamander follow the conservation biology

Abstract

Print and online media may reflect changing perceptions about wildlife when viewed in a historical context, as conservation programs bring about increased awareness of declining species. With a proven history of public misunderstanding and persecution, we focused on a nongame and at-risk species, the hellbender salamander (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis). To determine whether public perceptions of hellbenders change according to societal interests over time and to test Shaw's conservation eras, we conducted a content analysis of 288 newspaper articles over the past 153 years of coverage through Conservation Eras, including: Exploitation (1850–1899), Protection (1900–1929), Game Management (1930–1965), Environmental Management (1966–1979), and Conservation Biology (1980–2016). In addition, we examined trends in more recent online media coverage. As measured by article frame (valence values), we detected an increase in positive perceptions about hellbenders in newspapers after 1980, which coincides with the Conservation Biology Era. Many articles published within the Exploitation Era included informative natural history while articles in the Conservation Biology Era included information about the species decline or efforts to conserve and restore populations. Article frames from the Conservation Biology Era were more positive than any other era (X2 = 111.79, p < 0.001). Conservation efforts likely impacted online media coverage (via Google Trends), which increased following the federal listing of Ozark hellbenders and their successful captive rearing by the St. Louis Zoo in 2011. Because knowledge is generated and accessed more readily than ever, and we observed media is representative of societal changes, we anticipate a new era of conservation to follow the digital information age.