The connection between freedom of the press and environmental quality: An investigation on emerging market countries

Abstract

AbstractAlthough there have been many attempts in the literature to identify the main factors of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, the influence of freedom of the press on CO2 emissions has not yet been studied. This gap reveals a substantial question: can freedom of the press reduce CO2 emissions? This article is an initial study to reply to this question. In this study, the effects of freedom of the press and other control variables on CO2 emissions in Emerging‐7 (E‐, Turkey, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia, India, China, Brazil) countries for 1993–2016 are examined by panel autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model (method. The main finding is that freedom of the press can perform a substantial role in diminishing CO2 emissions in E‐7 countries. In addition, the evidence confirms that the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis is valid. Primary energy consumption and trade are also determined to be important factors that increase CO2 emissions. Within the framework of these results, policymakers must expand the freedom of the press to lower CO2 emissions.