INTERNAL REPORT: Nuclear energy: Individual perceptions and beliefs reflected in the media and elites dialogue: Perception and acceptability of radiation risks and implications for nuclear energy policy making (Project 64)

This report explores how individual perceptions and beliefs related to ionizing radiation are reflected in the media, and how they are reflected in public opinion. Every policy domain is seen in public discourse (media, public opinion, etc.) through a certain image. This image can be either negative or positive. The image around a certain policy can suddenly change drastically due to new circumstances. Past research has shown that events such as nuclear accident can change the image of nuclear energy and may play an important role in the political process. Due to this, special attention is given in this report to the effect of the Fukushima nuclear accident, through investigating the reflection of the nuclear crisis in mass media and public opinion. Many databases are used to start answering the question What are the influential factors behind nuclear energy policy change and absence of change after the Fukushima nuclear accident. The data used in the empirical chapters 3 and 4 are mainly collected in the context of the FP7 project PREPARE . However, we also use secondary data for the analysis of public opinion (Gallup Snap Poll conducted by WIN-Gallup International). The analyses presented in this report are original but preliminary.
Chapter 1 evaluates crisis as the engine of policy change and introduces a research plan for a study of the contextual factors determining nuclear energy policy change and stability after Fukushima. Chapter 2 introduces two broad theories discussing policy change and stability, the Advocacy Coalition Theory (ACF) and the Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (PE). Chapter 3 related to media agenda about the Fukushima nuclear accident and nuclear energy policy shows that about 20% of articles related to the Fukushima nuclear accident in selected countries also discussed the nuclear energy policy. Chapter 4 explores the public acceptance of nuclear power and it build on the existing knowledge.