Profiles
Libby Lester
Libby Lester
Director, Institute for Social Change
College of Arts, Law and Education
Professor, Media
School of Creative Arts and Media
Room 533 , Social Sciences Building
Libby Lester is Director of the Institute for Social Change and Professor of Media at the University of Tasmania. Her research focuses on how issues are raised, understood and responded to in public debate, and she is recognised internationally for her work on environmental communications.
She works across industries, government and NGOs to understand and promote the role of communication and media in good decision making about shared social and environmental heritage and futures. She asks in particular how regional communities and industries adapt and change in the face of global crises, such as climate change and land degradation, and expanding networks of communications, travel and trade.
Recent Australian Research Council-funded research has focussed on trade, resources and global communications, drawing on case studies on forestry, aquaculture, tourism and mining to examine the flows of information, resources and people between Australia and its Asian trading partners. Findings are available in the recently published book, Global Trade and Mediatised Environmental Protest: The View from Here (2019, Palgrave Macmillan).
Overall, she has authored, co-authored and co-edited seven books. These include Leadership and the Construction of Environmental Concerns (2018, Palgrave Macmillan), Environmental Pollution and the Media: Political Discourses of Risk and Responsibility in Australia, China and Japan (Routledge 2017) and Media and Environment: Conflict, Politics and the News (Polity 2010; Arabic ed 2013). She has been awarded four Australian Research Council discovery grants, most recently with Professors Brett Hutchins and Toby Miller to study sport as a communications platform for environmental issues.
Her research appears in leading international journals, including Media, Culture & Society, International Communication Gazette, Journalism, Forestry, International Journal of Communication, Environmental Policy and Governance, and International Journal of Press/Politics. She has been a Visiting Fellow at Oxford University's Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo.
Biography
Before joining the University, Professor Lester worked as a journalist, reporting on social, political and environmental issues for major Australian newspapers and magazines, including The Age, Good Weekend and the Melbourne Herald.
Career summary
Qualifications
| Degree | Title of Thesis | University | Country | Awarded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PhD | Contesting Wilderness: Media, Movement and Environmental Conflict in Tasmania | University of Melbourne | Australia | 2005 |
| BA | Australian National University | Australia | 1984 |
Memberships
Professional practice
Journals include:
- Editorial Board Member and former Associate Editor, Environmental Communication
- Editorial Board Member, Australian Journalism Review
- Editorial Board Member, Palgrave Studies in Media and Environmental Communication
- Editorial Advisor, Media International Australia
Reviewer:
- Reviewer for a range of international funding bodies and publishers.
Committee associations
- Member, Australian and New Zealand Communications Association
- Member, Journalism Education and Research Association of Australia
- Founding Member, International Environmental Communication Association
- Board Member, Island Magazine 2011-2012
Administrative expertise
- Director, Institute for Social Change (2020 - )
- Associate Dean, Research, College of Arts, Law and Education (2017 - 2019)
- Chair, University of Tasmania Academic Workload Consultative Committee (2017 - 2018)
- Deputy Dean, Faculty of Arts (2016)
- Head of Discipline, Journalism, Media and Communications
- Deputy Head, School of Social Sciences
- Deputy Head, School of English, Journalism and European Languages
- Member, Research College Board
- External reviewer for a range of Australian university departments and programs
Teaching
Journalism and News Media; Media and Communications; Environmental Media and News; Media and Communications Research Methods
Teaching expertise
Libby Lester supervises research higher degree candidates working in the areas of transnational media and trade, environmental and political conflict (local, regional, global), journalism and news studies, transnational media and politics, environmental communications, and protests and social movements.
View more on Professor Libby Lester in WARP
Expertise
Professor Lester's research combines longitudinal analysis of media texts and political change with in-depth investigation of behind-the-scenes practices of journalists, decision-makers, public relations professionals and campaigners. This approach allows media messages and political concerns to be traced as they flow between claims- and decision-makers, and to investigate media power in traditional and emerging platforms.
Latest Book
Global Trade and Mediatised Environmental Protest: The View from Here
Palgrave Macmillan 2019.
As more governments, companies and individuals scan the globe for access to primary resources such as minerals and timber, food, power and water, and destinations for work, holidays and homes, pressures on places and communities grow. At the same time, global environmental risks – most notably, climate change – produce new networks and unfamiliar forms of politics. Communication media are integral to this change. This book explores how geographically diverse groups and individuals interact in and through media to influence the negotiations and decisions affecting often distant landscapes and communities. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in the Australia-Asia region, the book includes case studies on the environmental protests that follow the international flow of people and resources, including timber, fish, coal, water and tourism. It asks how ‘communities of concern’ are evoked, which transcend local places and national boundaries.
Reviews
‘This book offers a richly illuminating and theoretically sophisticated account of the emergence of a new politics of environmental conflict that transcends local places and national boundaries. Drawing upon a range of fascinating ethnographic case studies, Lester provides significant new thinking on how shifts have occurred over time, and calls for the news media to do away with the myth of the bounded community.’
—Professor Alison Anderson, University of Plymouth, UK, and Adjunct Professor, Monash University, Australia
‘This is a timely and path-breaking contribution to the field of transnational protests and communications. With characteristic eloquence and insight Libby Lester provides a nuanced and dynamic view of the complex dance now being played out between environmental protests and media across national borders, explaining both media blind-spots and the levers that can sometimes propel environmental issues into the world spotlight. Highly recommended.’
—Professor Simon Cottle, Cardiff University, Wales
Lester’s The View from Here is an important contribution to the field of environmental communication in that it considers the challenges, possibilities and even contradictions of environmental protest in an age of ubiquitous media. By “following the media,” she identifies not only antagonisms but also gaps in definitions, guiding assumptions and the different levels of political power and agency that shape and define local environmental conflicts. Significantly, Lester also engages questions of how information and science can be used to mount more impactful protests for forcing powerful interests to take responsibility and work for sustainable change, making this book an essential read for anyone committed to real environmental problem solving.
—Professor Patrick D. Murphy, author of The Media Commons: Globalization and Environmental Discourses
Lester has written a readable book on mediated environmental protest, solidly grounded in recent theoretical developments and packed with original empirical insights. The book delivers a state-of-the-art examination of the mediated strategies, tactics and alliances that protesters develop in order to affect environmental decisions and policies. The analysis features several interesting cases in Australia and elsewhere that show the ambiguous role of the media for advancing environmental causes, and brings up valuable points of interest to researchers and activists. A must read!
— Professor Silvio Waisbord, George Washington University, USA
Fields of Research
- Media studies (470107)
- Communication and media studies (470199)
- Journalism studies (470105)
- Communication studies (470101)
- Environmental communication (470103)
- Environmental sociology (441002)
- Social change (441004)
- Urban sociology and community studies (441016)
- Other Indigenous studies (459999)
- Natural resource management (410406)
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the law (450518)
- Recreation, leisure and tourism geography (440608)
- Marketing management (incl. strategy and customer relations) (350605)
- Media industry studies (470106)
- Public health (420699)
- Performance art (360603)
- Social policy (440712)
- Nutrition and dietetics (321099)
- Cultural studies (470299)
- Environment policy (440704)
- Family and household studies (440301)
- Applied sociology, program evaluation and social impact assessment (441001)
- Marketing communications (350604)
- Forestry management and environment (300707)
- Ecological impacts of climate change and ecological adaptation (410102)
- Australian history (430302)
- Corporate governance (350701)
- Environmental education and extension (410403)
- Visual arts (360699)
- Welfare economics (380119)
- Public law (480799)
- Other education (399999)
- Fisheries management (300505)
- Environmental politics (440805)
- Tree improvement (incl. selection and breeding) (300709)
- Screen media (360505)
- Environmental management (410404)
- Rural sociology (441003)
- Physical oceanography (370803)
Research Objectives
- The media (130204)
- Communication (130299)
- Expanding knowledge in human society (280123)
- Communication across languages and culture (130201)
- Other environmental management (189999)
- Social impacts of climate change and variability (190103)
- Pacific Peoples community services (210999)
- The creative arts (130103)
- Other law, politics and community services (239999)
- Trade and environment (190210)
- Structure, delivery and resourcing (230113)
- Arts (130199)
- Socio-cultural issues in tourism (110402)
- Assessment and management of Antarctic and Southern Ocean ecosystems (180403)
- Aquaculture fin fish (excl. tuna) (100202)
- Employment patterns and change (230501)
- Marketing (150303)
- Workforce transition and employment (160206)
- Political systems (230203)
- Nutrition (200410)
- Behaviour and health (200401)
- Ability and disability (230101)
- Climate change adaptation measures (excl. ecosystem) (190101)
- Public services policy advice and analysis (230204)
- Organised sports (130602)
- Other plant production and plant primary products (269999)
- Social class and inequalities (230112)
- Conserving the historic environment (130405)
- Management and productivity (150399)
- Ecosystem adaptation to climate change (190102)
- Hardwood plantations (260201)
- Community services (230199)
- Other education and training (169999)
- Environmental education and awareness (190203)
- Heritage (130499)
- Softwood plantations (260205)
- Environmentally sustainable animal production (100199)
- Understanding Australia's past (130703)
- Publishing and print services (220503)
- Primary products from animals (100699)
- Climate change mitigation strategies (190301)
- International political economy (excl. international trade) (230304)
Publications
Total publications
90
Journal Article
(44 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Cullen-Knox C, Fleming A, Lester L, Ogier E, 'Perceiving environmental science, risk and industry regulation in the mediatised vicious cycles of the Tasmanian salmon aquaculture industry', Social Epistemology pp. 1-33. ISSN 0269-1728 (In Press) [Refereed Article] Co-authors: Cullen-Knox C; Fleming A; Ogier E | |
| 2021 | Nixon C, Konkes C, Lester L, Williams K, 'Mediated visibility and public environmental litigation: the interplay between inside and outside court during environmental conflict in Australia', Laws, 10, (2) Article 35. ISSN 2075-471X (2021) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.3390/laws10020035 [eCite] [Details] Co-authors: Nixon C; Konkes C; Williams K | |
| 2021 | Ross A, Lester L, Konkes C, 'Audience perspectives on paying for local news: a regional qualitative case study', Journalism Studies ISSN 1461-670X (In Press) [Refereed Article] Co-authors: Konkes C | |
| 2020 | Cullen-Knox C, Fleming A, Lester L, Ogier E, 'Tracing environmental sustainability discourses: an Australia-Asia seafood case study', Frontiers in Marine Science, 7, (MAR) Article 176. ISSN 2296-7745 (2020) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.3389/fmars.2020.00176 [eCite] [Details] Co-authors: Cullen-Knox C; Fleming A; Ogier E | |
| 2020 | Kent K, Murray S, Penrose B, Auckland S, Visentin D, et al., 'Prevalence and socio-demographic predictors of food insecurity in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic', Nutrients, 12, (9) pp. 1-20. ISSN 2072-6643 (2020) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.3390/nu12092682 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 5Web of Science - 5 Co-authors: Kent K; Murray S; Penrose B; Auckland S; Visentin D | |
| 2020 | Milstein T, McGaurr L, Lester L, 'Make love, not war?: Radical environmental activism's reconfigurative potential and pitfalls', Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space pp. 1-19. ISSN 2514-8486 (2020) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/2514848620901443 [eCite] [Details] Co-authors: McGaurr L | |
| 2019 | Cullen-Knox C, Fleming A, Lester L, Ogier E, 'Publicised scrutiny and mediatised environmental conflict: the case of Tasmanian salmon aquaculture', Marine Policy, 100 pp. 307-315. ISSN 0308-597X (2019) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1016/j.marpol.2018.11.040 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 8Web of Science - 10 Co-authors: Cullen-Knox C; Fleming A; Ogier E | |
| 2019 | Dodd B, Konkes C, Reid D, Lester L, 'A freelance-based foreign exchange programme: Tasmanian students' professional development on WORLDREP', Australian Journalism Review, 41, (1) pp. 85-102. ISSN 0810-2686 (2019) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1386/ajr.41.1.85_1 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 1 Co-authors: Dodd B; Konkes C; Reid D | |
| 2019 | Edwards P, Fleming A, Lacey J, Lester L, Pinkard L, et al., 'Trust, engagement, information and social licence: insights from New Zealand', Environmental Research Letters, 14, (2) pp. 1-9. ISSN 1748-9326 (2019) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/aaf33c [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 9Web of Science - 10 Co-authors: Fleming A | |
| 2018 | Ripoll Gonzalez L, Lester L, ' All for One, One for All': communicative processes of cocreation of place brands through inclusive and horizontal stakeholder collaborative networks', Communication & Society, 31, (4) pp. 59-78. ISSN 0214-0039 (2018) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.15581/003.31.4.59-78 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 3Web of Science - 3 Co-authors: Ripoll Gonzalez L | |
| 2017 | Cullen-Knox C, Eccleston R, Haward M, Lester E, Vince J, 'Contemporary challenges in environmental governance: technology, governance and the social licence', Environmental Policy and Governance, 27, (1) pp. 3-13. ISSN 1756-932X (2017) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1002/eet.1743 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 18Web of Science - 15 Co-authors: Cullen-Knox C; Eccleston R; Haward M; Vince J | |
| 2017 | Foxwell-Norton K, Lester L, 'Saving the Great Barrier Reef from disaster, media then and now', Media Culture and Society, 39, (4) pp. 568-581. ISSN 0163-4437 (2017) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/0163443717692738 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 7Web of Science - 6 | |
| 2017 | Konkes C, Lester L, 'Incomplete knowledge, rumour and truth seeking: when conspiracy theories become news', Journalism Studies, 18, (7) pp. 826-844. ISSN 1461-670X (2017) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/1461670X.2015.1089182 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 1Web of Science - 1 Co-authors: Konkes C | |
| 2017 | McGaurr L, Lester L, 'Environmental groups treading the discursive tightrope of social license: Australian and Canadian cases compared', International Journal of Communication, 11 pp. 3476-3496. ISSN 1932-8036 (2017) [Refereed Article] Co-authors: McGaurr L | |
| 2017 | Tranter BK, Lester L, 'Climate patriots? Concern over climate change and other environmental issues in Australia', Public Understanding of Science, 26, (6) pp. 738-752. ISSN 0963-6625 (2017) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/0963662515618553 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 3Web of Science - 3 Co-authors: Tranter BK | |
| 2016 | Konkes C, Lester L, 'Justice, politics and the social usefulness of news', Crime, Media, Culture: an international journal, 12, (1) pp. 17-35. ISSN 1741-6590 (2016) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1741659015599975 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 4Web of Science - 4 Co-authors: Konkes C | |
| 2016 | Lester L, 'Containing spectacle in the transnational public sphere', Environmental Communication, 10, (6) pp. 791-802. ISSN 1752-4032 (2016) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/17524032.2015.1127849 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 7Web of Science - 5 | |
| 2016 | Lester L, 'Media and social licence: on being publicly useful in Tasmanian forests conflict', Forestry, 89, (5) pp. 542-551. ISSN 0015-752X (2016) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1093/forestry/cpw015 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 27Web of Science - 20 | |
| 2016 | McGaurr L, Tranter B, Lester L, 'Environmental leaders and Indigenous engagement in Australia: a cosmopolitan enterprise?', Conservation and Society, 14, (3) pp. 254-266. ISSN 0972-4923 (2016) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.4103/0972-4923.191163 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 3Web of Science - 4 Co-authors: McGaurr L; Tranter B | |
| 2015 | Hutchins B, Lester EA, 'Theorizing the enactment of mediatized environmental conflict', The International Communication Gazette, 77, (4) pp. 337-358. ISSN 1748-0485 (2015) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1748048514568765 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 33Web of Science - 28 | |
| 2015 | Lester EA, 'Three challenges for environmental communication research', Environmental Communication, 9, (3) pp. 392-397. ISSN 1752-4032 (2015) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/17524032.2015.1044065 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 7Web of Science - 7 | |
| 2015 | Lester EA, 'Journalism research and practice in Australian Universities', Australian Journalism Review, 37, (1) pp. 179-188. ISSN 0810-2686 (2015) [Refereed Article] Citations: Scopus - 4 | |
| 2015 | McGaurr L, Tranter B, Lester L, 'Wilderness and the media politics of place branding', Environmental Communication, 9, (3) pp. 269-287. ISSN 1752-4032 (2015) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/17524032.2014.919947 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 9Web of Science - 8 Co-authors: McGaurr L; Tranter B | |
| 2014 | Lester L, 'Transnational publics and environmental conflict in the Asian Century', Media International Australia, 150 pp. 167-178. ISSN 1329-878X (2014) [Refereed Article] Citations: Web of Science - 11 | |
| 2014 | Lester L, McGaurr L, Tranter B, 'The Election that Forgot the Environment? Issues, EMOs, and the Press in Australia', International Journal of Press/Politics, 20, (1) pp. 3-25. ISSN 1940-1620 (2014) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1940161214552030 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 5Web of Science - 4 Co-authors: McGaurr L; Tranter B | |
| 2013 | McGaurr LC, Lester EA, Painter J, 'Risk, uncertainty and opportunity in climate change coverage: Australia compared', Australian Journalism Review, 35, (2) pp. 21-34. ISSN 0810-2686 (2013) [Refereed Article] Co-authors: McGaurr LC | |
| 2012 | Lester L, Hutchins B, 'Soft journalism, politics and environmental risk: An Australian story', Journalism, 13, (5) pp. 654-6657. ISSN 1741-3001 (2012) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1464884911421706 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 12Web of Science - 11 | |
| 2012 | Lester L, Hutchins B, 'The power of the unseen: environmental conflict, the media and invisibility', Media Culture and Society, 34, (7) pp. 847-863. ISSN 0163-4437 (2012) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/0163443712452772 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 49Web of Science - 48 | |
| 2012 | Lester L, Hutchins B, 'Journalism, the environment and the new media politics of invisibility', Australian Journalism Review, 34, (2) pp. 19-31. ISSN 0810-2686 (2012) [Refereed Article] | |
| 2011 | Lester EA, 'Species of the month: Anti-whaling, mediated visibility, and the news', Environmental Communication, 5, (1) pp. 124-139. ISSN 1752-4040 (2011) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/17524032.2010.542768 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 6Web of Science - 8 | |
| 2011 | Lester EA, 'Expanding Journalism Studies in a Competitive Environment', Australian Journalism Review, 33, (1) pp. 41-44. ISSN 0810-2686 (2011) [Non Refereed Article] Citations: Scopus - 3 | |
| 2011 | Lester EA, 'No Images from the Forest Frontline: Invisibility in the Internet Age', Island, 127 Summer 2011, (127 Summer 2011) pp. 36-41. ISSN 1035-3127 (2011) [Non Refereed Article] | |
| 2010 | Lester EA, 'Big Tree, small news: Media access, symbolic power and strategic intervention', Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, 11, (5) pp. 589-606. ISSN 1464-8849 (2010) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1464884910373537 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 7 | |
| 2009 | Lester EA, Cottle S, 'Visualizing Climate Change: Television News and Ecological Citizenship', International Journal of Communication, 3 pp. 920-936. ISSN 1932-8036 (2009) [Refereed Article] | |
| 2009 | Lester EA, Hutchins B, 'Power games: environmental protest, news media and the internet', Media, Culture & Society, 31, (4) pp. 579-595. ISSN 0163-4437 (2009) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/0163443709335201 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 79Web of Science - 65 | |
| 2008 | Giblett R, Lester EA, 'Introduction: Environmental Sustainability', Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, 22, (2) pp. 167-170. ISSN 1030-4312 (2008) [Non Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/10304310701864360 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 7Web of Science - 5 | |
| 2008 | Giblett R, Lester EA, 'Environmental Sustainability', 22, (2) pp. 289. ISSN 1030-4312 (2008) [Edited Journal] | |
| 2008 | van Vuuren K, Lester EA, 'Eco-media', 127, (May) pp. 181. ISSN 1329-878X (2008) [Edited Journal] | |
| 2008 | van Vuuren K, Lester EA, 'Ecomedia: Of Angelic Images and Environmental Values', Media International Australia incorporating Culture and Policy, 127, (May) pp. 71-81. ISSN 1329-878X (2008) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/1329878x0812700111 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 3Web of Science - 3 | |
| 2006 | Hutchins B, Lester EA, 'Environmental Protest and Tap-dancing with the Media in the Information Age', Media, Culture and Society, 28, (3) pp. 433-451. ISSN 0163-4437 (2006) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1177/0163443706062911 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 59Web of Science - 49 | |
| 2006 | Lester EA, 'Lost in the Wilderness? Celebrity, Protest and the News', Journalism Studies, 7, (6) pp. 907-921. ISSN 1461-670X (2006) [Refereed Article] DOI: 10.1080/14616700600980686 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 22 | |
| 2006 | Lester EA, 'We Too Are Green: Public Relations, Symbolic Power and the Tasmanian Wilderness Conflict', Media International Australia incorporating Culture and Policy, 121, (November) pp. 52-64. ISSN 1329-878X (2006) [Refereed Article] | |
| 2006 | Lester EA, 'Journalism, Reflexivity, and the Natural State', Australian Journal of Communication, 33, (2, 3) pp. 75-88. ISSN 0811-6202 (2006) [Refereed Article] | |
| 2005 | Lester EA, 'Wilderness and the Loaded Language of News', Media International Australia incorporating Culture and Policy, 115, (May) pp. 123-134. ISSN 1329-878X (2005) [Refereed Article] |
Book
(8 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Lester E, 'Global Trade and Mediatised Environmental Protest: The View From Here', Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 177. ISBN 978-3-030-27722-2 (2019) [Authored Research Book] | |
| 2017 | Hook GD, Lester L, Ji M, Edney K, Pope CG, et al., 'Environmental pollution and the media: political discourses of risk and responsibility in Australia, China and Japan', Routledge, United Kingdom, pp. 204. ISBN 9780415710312 (2017) [Authored Research Book] DOI: 10.4324/9781315198446 [eCite] [Details] Citations: Scopus - 2 | |
| 2017 | Tranter B, Lester L, McGaurr L, 'Leadership and the construction of environmental concerns', Palgrave Macmillan, London, United Kingdom, pp. 183. ISBN 978-1-137-56583-9 (2017) [Authored Research Book] DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-56584-6 [eCite] [Details] Co-authors: Tranter B; McGaurr L | |
| 2013 | Lester EA, 'Media and Environment' (2013) [Revision/New Edition] | |
| 2013 | Lester EA, Hutchins B, 'Environmental Conflict and the Media', Peter Lang, New York, pp. 347. ISBN 978-1-433-11892-0 (2013) [Edited Book] | |
| 2011 | Cottle SR, Lester EA, 'Transnational Protests and the Media', Peter Lang, New York, pp. 352. ISBN 978-1-4331-0985-0 (2011) [Edited Book] Co-authors: Cottle SR | |
| 2010 | Lester EA, 'Media and Environment: Conflict, Politics and the News', Polity Press, Cambridge, pp. 200. ISBN 978-0-7456-4401-1 (2010) [Authored Research Book] | |
| 2007 | Lester EA, 'Giving Ground: Media and Environmental Conflict in Tasmania', Quintus Publishing, Hobart, pp. 189. ISBN 978-0-9775572-3-3 (2007) [Authored Research Book] |
Chapter in Book
(19 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Hutchins B, Lester E, Miller T, 'Greening Media Sport: Sport and the Communication of Environmental Issues', Communication and Sport, De Gruyter, ML Butterworth (ed), Berlin, Germany ISBN 9783110657074 (In Press) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2021 | McGaurr L, Lester L, 'The Climate Gaze and Koalas in Extremis', Intimate Relations: Communicating (in) the Anthropocene, Lexington Press, A Dare and V Fletcher (ed), Washington DC, USA ISBN 9781788119627 (2021) [Research Book Chapter] Co-authors: McGaurr L | |
| 2020 | Lester L, Foxwell-Norton K, 'Citizens and Science: Media, Communication and Conservation', Conservation Research, Policy and Practice, Cambridge University Press, WJ Sutherland et al (ed), Cambridge, UK, pp. 265-276. ISBN 9781108638210 (2020) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2018 | McGaurr L, Lester L, 'See It Before It's Too Late? Last-Chance Travel Lists and Climate Change', Climate Change and the Media, Peter Lang Inc, B Brevini and J Lewis (ed), New York, pp. 123-140. ISBN 978-1-4331-5437-9 (2018) [Research Book Chapter] DOI: 10.3726/b14826 [eCite] [Details] Co-authors: McGaurr L | |
| 2017 | Lester L, 'Environment and human rights activism, journalism and 'the new war'', Routledge Companion to Media & Human Rights, Routledge, S Waisbord and H Tumber (ed), United Kingdom, pp. 268-276. ISBN 9781138665545 (2017) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2015 | Lester EA, 'Containment and Reach: The changing ecology of environmental communication: News and new media roles', Routledge Handbook of Environmental Communication, Routledge, Hansen, A and Cox, R (ed), Abingdon, pp. 232-241. ISBN 978-0-415-70435-9 (2015) [Other Book Chapter] | |
| 2015 | Lester EA, Cottle S, 'Transnational protests, publics and media participation (in an environmental age)', The Routledge Handbook of Environment and Communication, Routledge, Hansen, A and Cox, R (ed), Abingdon, pp. 100-110. ISBN 978-0-415-70435-9 (2015) [Other Book Chapter] | |
| 2014 | Lester EA, 'Media and the Environment', The Media & Communications in Australia, Allen & Unwin, Stuart Cunningham and Sue Turnbull (ed), Crows Nest , NSW, pp. 321-327. ISBN 9781743311639 (2014) [Other Book Chapter] | |
| 2013 | Hutchins B, Lester EA, 'Tree-Sitting in the Network Society', Environmental Conflict and the Media, Peter Lang, L Lester and B Hutchins (ed), New York, pp. 7-21. ISBN 9781433118937 (2013) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2013 | Hutchins B, Lester EA, 'Environmental Protest and Tap-Dancing with the Media in the Information Age', Media and the Environment: Critical Concepts in the Environment, Routledge, A Hansen (ed), United Kinddom, pp. 1-10. ISBN 978-0415525626 (2013) [Revised Book Chapter] | |
| 2013 | Lester EA, Cottle SR, 'Visualising Climate Change: TV News and Ecological Citizenship', Media and the Environment: Critical Concepts in the Environment, Routledge, Anders Hansen (ed), United Kindgdom, pp. 1-10. ISBN 978-0415525626 (2013) [Revised Book Chapter] Co-authors: Cottle SR | |
| 2013 | Lester EA, Hutchins B, 'Power Games: Environmental Protest, News Media and the Internet', Media and the Environment: Critical Concepts in the Environment, Routledge, A Hansen (ed), United Kindgom, pp. 1-10. ISBN 978-0415525626 (2013) [Revised Book Chapter] | |
| 2013 | Lester L, 'On Flak, Balance and Activism: The Ups and Downs of Environmental Journalism', Journalism Research and Investigation in a Digital World, Oxford University Press, S Tanner and N Richardson (ed), Melbourne, pp. 221-232. ISBN 9780195518337 (2013) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2013 | McGaurr LC, Lester EA, 'Country Studies: Australia', Climate Change in the Media: Reporting Risk and Uncertainty, I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd, James Painter (ed), London, pp. 79-88. ISBN 978 1 78076 588 4 (2013) [Research Book Chapter] Co-authors: McGaurr LC | |
| 2011 | Hutchins B, Lester L, 'Politics, Power and Online Protest in an Age of Environmental Conflict', Transnational Protests and the Media, Peter Lang, S Cottle, L Lester (ed), New York, pp. 159-171. ISBN 978-1-4331-0986-7 (2011) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2011 | Lester L, Cottle S, 'Transational Protests and the Media: Toward Global Civil Society?', Transnational Protests and the Media, Peter Lang, S Cottle, L Lester (ed), New York, pp. 287-291. ISBN 978-1-4331-0986-7 (2011) [Research Book Chapter] Co-authors: Cottle S | |
| 2011 | Lester L, Cottle S, 'Transnational Protests and the Media: An Introduction', Transnational Protests and the Media, Peter Lang, S Cottle, L Lester (ed), New York, pp. 3-16. ISBN 978-1-4331-0986-7 (2011) [Research Book Chapter] Co-authors: Cottle S | |
| 2010 | Lester EA, 'Journalism and Celebrity Politics', Journalism and Meaning-Making: Reading the Newspaper, Hampton Press, Verica Rupar (ed), Cresskill, NJ, pp. 141-157. ISBN 978-1-57273-937-6 (2010) [Research Book Chapter] | |
| 2009 | McGaurr LC, Lester EA, 'Complementary Problems, Competing Risks: Climate Change, Nuclear Energy and The Australian', Climate Change and the Media, Peter Lang, Tammy Boyce and Justin Lewis (ed), New York, pp. 174-185. ISBN 978-1-4331-0461-9 (2009) [Research Book Chapter] Co-authors: McGaurr LC |
Conference Publication
(10 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Kent K, Penrose B, Murray S, Auckland S, Visentin D, et al., 'Consumer Perceptions of Locally Grown Produce During the COVID-19 Pandemic', Consumer Perceptions of Locally Grown Produce During the COVID-19 Pandemic, 3 - 4 December 2020, online (2020) [Conference Extract] Co-authors: Kent K; Penrose B; Murray S; Auckland S; Visentin D | |
| 2019 | Dodd B, Lester L, 'Between public and brand engagement: communicating an ecological crisis', The 69th Annual International Communication Association Conference, 24-28 May, Washington, D.C. (2019) [Conference Extract] Co-authors: Dodd B | |
| 2019 | Lester L, 'Global Trade and Environmental Protest', Conference on Communication and Environment, 17-21 June 2019, University of British Columbia, Canada (2019) [Keynote Presentation] | |
| 2019 | Lester L, 'The View from Here: Transnational Environmental Conflict for a Mediatised Age', Conference on Communication, Culture and Media Studies, 19 April 2019, Universitas Islam Indonesia, Yogyakarta (2019) [Keynote Presentation] | |
| 2018 | McGaurr L, Lester L, 'The Climate Gaze', Journalism from the margins to the mainstream: JERAA Annual Conference: Program and Abstracts, 3-5 December 2018, University of Tasmania, pp. 25. (2018) [Conference Extract] Co-authors: McGaurr L | |
| 2013 | Lehman KF, Fillis I, Frankham NH, Lester EA, 'An analysis of intrinsic impact and visitor engagement in the visual arts', Proceedings of the Academy of Marketing's (UK) 12th International Colloquium on Nonprofit, Arts, Heritage, and Social Marketing, September 6, 2013, Scotland, pp. 1-6. (2013) [Conference Extract] Co-authors: Lehman KF; Frankham NH | |
| 2008 | McGaurr LC, Lester EA, 'Complementary Problems, Competing Risks: Climate Change, Nuclear Energy and the Australian', Comparative Journalism Studies Conference, 25-27 July, Hobart, Tasmania (2008) [Conference Extract] Co-authors: McGaurr LC | |
| 2008 | Rupar V, Lester EA, 'Conference Proceedings ', EJEL, 25-27 June 2008, Hobart (2008) [Conference Edited] Co-authors: Rupar V | |
| 2005 | Lester EA, Ellis C, 'Proceedings of Imaging Nature: Media, Environment and Tourism', Faculty of Arts, 27-29 June 2004, Cradle Mountain, Tasmania (2005) [Conference Edited] | |
| 2005 | Lester EA, Ellis C, 'Edited Volume of Conference Proceedings of Imaging Nature: Media, Environment and Tourism, Cradle Mountain, 27-29 June 2004', Faculty of Arts, University of Tasmania, June 2004, Cradle Mountain, Tasmania, pp. online. (2005) [Conference Edited] Co-authors: Ellis C |
Major Creative Work
(1 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Frankham N, Lehman K, Lester E, 'Domain: a contested landscape, Exhibition, Ten Days on the Island. Artists: Lisa Anderson, Lucy Bleach, Joy Barber, Patricia Brassington, Lindsay Broughton, Steven Carson, Linda Erceg, Ruth Frost, Megan Keating, Milan Milojevic, Brigita Ozolins, Geoff Parr, Troy Ruffels, Marie Sierra, David Stephenson, Lucia Usmiani, John Vella, Martin Walch and Paul Zika', Plimsoll Gallery, Domain House, Queens Domain, Hobart (2013) [Curated Exhibition] Co-authors: Frankham N; Lehman K |
Thesis
(1 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Lester EA, 'Contesting Wilderness: Media, Movement and Environmental Conflict in Tasmania' (2005) [PhD] |
Entry
(2 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Anderson A, Lester L, 'Foreword in 'The Local and the Digital in Environmental Communication'', Global Transformations in Media and Communication Research - A Palgrave and IAMCR Series, J Diaz-Pont et al (ed), UK (2020) [Entry] | |
| 2014 | Lester EA, 'Environmental Reporting', A Companion to the Australian Media, B. Griffen-Foley (ed), Australia, 1, pp. 152-153 (2014) [Entry] |
Other Public Output
(5 outputs)| Year | Citation | Altmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Lester L, 'How Bob Brown taught Australians to talk about, and care for, the 'wilderness'', The Conversation, The Conversation Media Trust, Melbourne, Australia, 24 August 2020 (2020) [Magazine Article] | |
| 2019 | Lester L, 'Talking Point: Markets keep keen eye on war', The Mercury, News Corp, Hobart, Tasmania, 2 December (2019) [Newspaper Article] | |
| 2018 | Hutchins B, Lester L, 'Some questions for Simon Birmingham, from two researchers whose ARC grant he quashed', The Conversation, The Conversation Media Group Ltd, Australia, 29 October 2018 (2018) [Magazine Article] | |
| 2017 | Hutchins B, Lester L, 'Sport, the environment and climate change - A note from Australia', Play the Game, Danish Institute for Sports Studies, Denmark, 19 December 2017 (2017) [Magazine Article] Co-authors: Hutchins B | |
| 2007 | Lester EA, 'Tasmanian tales: when celebrity falls flat', Crikey.com.au, Australia, 29 August (2007) [Newspaper Article] |
Grants & Funding
Funding Summary
Number of grants
19
Total funding
Projects
- Description
- This project will seek to understand Tasmanians attitudes to tourism within their home state.
- Funding
- Brand Tasmania ($3,500)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2021
- Description
- The research involves a number of reports published that explore the complexities of the cultural and creative industries ecology as it pertains to workplace patterns.
- Funding
- Arts Tasmania ($10,000)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Williams KA
- Year
- 2021
- Description
- Analysis of relevant national datasets on community participation and workforce. Measure / understand community value of creativity and culture through community surveys and interviews. Understand COVID-19 impacts on the cultural and creative sector and ambitions for individual and sector support and recovery / future through workforce survey and interviews with workforce and sector leaders.
- Funding
- Department of State Growth (Tas) ($9,813)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Williams KA; Yanotti MB
- Year
- 2020
- Description
- Design, deployment and management of an online survey to inform the COVID-19 Public Information Unit's public campaign on longer-term community behavioural change for COVID-19 safety.
- Funding
- Department of Premier and Cabinet ($10,000)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2020
- Description
- Design and delivery of a survey aligned to the OECDs Better Life Index identifying what matters to Tasmanians and how satisfied they are with each measure in their own lives, as a platform for future policy development.
- Funding
- Department of Treasury and Finance ($18,093)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Stoeckl NE; Tranter BK; Banham RT; Pisanu N; Horton EM
- Year
- 2020
- Description
- This pioneering project aims to investigate the range of environmental and sustainability messages communicatedby media sport, and how these messages negotiate the dilemma of promoting environmental awareness through events and activities that also generate adverse ecological impacts. By engaging media sport professionals, environmental claims-makers, policy-makers and journalists, this project seeks to deliver valuable knowledge that informs industry decision-making, policy formulation and environmental awareness. The intended societal benefit is a new understanding of how environmental issues are communicated through popular media to large-scale publics, including how tensions in the communication of environmental change are negotiated.
- Funding
- Australian Research Council ($429,962)
- Scheme
- Grant-Discovery Projects
- Administered By
- Monash University
- Research Team
- Hutchins Brett; Lester EA; Miller BT
- Period
- 2020 - 2022
- Grant Reference
- DP200103360
- Description
- Collaborative research and analysis of Tasmanias changing demographics to better inform policy and program development
- Funding
- Department of State Growth (Tas) ($150,000)
- Scheme
- Contract Research
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Denny LJ
- Period
- 2019 - 2021
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($105,000)
- Scheme
- Grant- Research Enhancement Program
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2019
- Description
- This project will develop approaches for bridging the communication gap between scientists and the wider community.If science is to be influential in informing environmentalmanagement through policy change, it requires effective engagement between scientists and the public. While there is some knowledge of how well the public understands science, there is little knowledge of scientists' understanding of their public, which plays out in examples of poorly targeted and ineffective communication about important environmental issues. This project will develop approaches for bridging the communication gap betweenscientists and the wider community, drawing on the University of Tasmania's expertise on environmental communication.CSIRO Scholarship Top Up for Israel Adeseko
- Funding
- CSIRO-Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation ($51,000)
- Scheme
- Scholarship-Top-Up
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Pinkard L
- Period
- 2019 - 2022
- Description
- We live in an age of staggering data availability, yet people around the world are becoming increasingly skeptical of science. Moreover, demands for natural resources continue to escalate and we need to manage these demands in the face of unprecedented environmental changes. Major transformations are needed to create a sustainable future for our state, region, country and the planet. A key challenge for environmental sustainability is identifying how to encourage the uptake of behaviors at individual, local and global scales - that will leverage greater environmental benefit.This proposal will examine:1.What are the key leverage points and associated processes for achieving an engaged and scientifically literate society, to underpin effective management of Australias marine resources?, and2.How can we adapt models of change that have successfully led to positive environmental behavior and stewardship in the recent past?
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($50,000)
- Scheme
- null
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Pecl GT; Scott JL; McGee JS; Nowak BF; Lester EA; Vince JZ; Norris K; de Salas KL
- Year
- 2019
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($96,750)
- Scheme
- Grant- Research Enhancement Program
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2018
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($63,000)
- Scheme
- Grant- Research Enhancement Program
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2017
- Description
- Conflict over environments, resources and landscapes has become a feature of contemporary political life. Increasingly, these conflicts are articulated, negotiated and potentially resolved across national boundaries and complex networks of media and communications. In the context of intensifying pressure for resource access, market opportunities and changing media practices in Australia and the Asian region, it is critical to examine how competing environmental claims are mediated, and how this mediation influences public debate, policy and market viability. Providing evidence-based analysis of transnational conflicts as they emerge and travel, this project will inform debate on Australias environmental and economic sustainability.
- Funding
- Australian Research Council ($237,500)
- Scheme
- Grant-Discovery Projects
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Period
- 2015 - 2018
- Grant Reference
- DP150103454
- Description
- Journalism remains a central source of information about our world. Individuals,communities, industries and governments continue to rely on news media to provide knowledge of issues and to interpret change. The capacity to understand the contextualise our world demands reporters with international knowledge and outlook, who can respond to local and global events and conditions. This program dresses this demand.
- Funding
- European Union ($1,004,217)
- Scheme
- Grant
- Administered By
- Department of Education and Training (Commonwealth)
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Clifford KL; Allen P; Doi M; Forde S; Munk I
- Period
- 2015 - 2018
- Description
- This project investigates environmental leadership in Australia in a period of rapid political and media change, for the first time connecting leadership of the Australian environmental movement to the public articulation and negotiation of environmental threats and conflict. By mapping the shifting profile of environmental leadership in Australia and its political and media influences, this research will contribute incisive, evidence-based knowledge to the politics of environmental sustainability.
- Funding
- Australian Research Council ($181,100)
- Scheme
- Grant-Discovery Projects
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Tranter BK; Lester EA
- Period
- 2013 - 2015
- Grant Reference
- DP130102154
- Description
- The environment is a key political concern, with media reportage of environmental issues provoking critical democratic debate. This project investigates environmental conflict, news media and politics in a time of rapid socio-cultural and technological change. The Internet and V/ are crucial additions to the media ecology mix alongside print and broadcast platforms, enabling innovative activist strategies and producing unpredictable political responses. The first project of its type in Australia, this research will significantly enhance understanding of the media and political contexts in which environmental conflict occurs, as well as make an original contribution to international scholarship on environmental media.
- Funding
- Australian Research Council ($182,000)
- Scheme
- Grant-Discovery Projects
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA; Hutchins Brett
- Period
- 2010 - 2012
- Grant Reference
- DP1095173
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($10,000)
- Scheme
- Grant-Institutional Research Scheme
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2007
- Funding
- University of Tasmania ($6,816)
- Scheme
- Grant-Institutional Research Scheme
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2006
- Funding
- Flexible Education Unit ($3,000)
- Scheme
- Projects to Internationalise the Curriculum
- Administered By
- University of Tasmania
- Research Team
- Lester EA
- Year
- 2005
Research Supervision
Current
8
Completed
17
Current
| Degree | Title | Commenced |
|---|---|---|
| PhD | Media and Environmental Conflict over Salmon Aquaculture: Investigating the local and the transnational | 2016 |
| PhD | Who's Afraid of Minority Government? A comparative analysis of the role news media plays in agenda setting and myth-making | 2017 |
| PhD | Media Consolidation and Personalised News Feeds: Investigating the impact on the quality, diversity and impact of political news in regional Australia | 2018 |
| PhD | Social Media as a News Source: How The Guardian uses social media texts to report on crisis events | 2018 |
| PhD | Reporting Antarctica: Unlocking the secrets of the frozen continent | 2018 |
| PhD | Translation of Environmental Knowledge to Policy: Bridging the gap between scientists and societal behavioral change | 2019 |
| Masters | Narrative focussed environmental documentary: A documentary film about the proposal to fly tourists into a standing camp on Lake Malbena in Tasmania's Wilderness World Heritage area | 2020 |
| Unknown | Transformative Making and Narrative A Poetic Exploration of Objects, Place and the Archive | 2020 |
Completed
| Degree | Title | Completed |
|---|---|---|
| PhD | News Media Representation of Public Environmental Litigation During Environmental Conflict: Coal, coral and courtrooms Candidate: Cynthia Amelia Nixon | 2019 |
| PhD | Becoming Emblematic: Lessons from a mediatised megaproject conflict in Chile Candidate: Marie-Gabrielle Mocatta | 2019 |
| PhD | Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Ontological security and experiences of Tasmanian forests Candidate: Rebecca Tahnee Banham | 2019 |
| PhD | Framing the Future: Propositional journalism and the construction of leadership in New Tasmania Candidate: William Manning Dodd | 2018 |
| PhD | Leadership and the Construction of Environmental Concern in Tasmania Candidate: Peter Edward Wells | 2018 |
| PhD | Improving Citizen Engagement: Community conversations and collaboration on ABC local radio Candidate: Jocelyn Ellen Nettlefold | 2017 |
| PhD | Inclusive Policy Networks for Participatory Place Branding: Enhancing stakeholder engagement using an action intervention methodology Candidate: Laura Ripoll Gonzalez | 2017 |
| Masters | The Queens Domain and the Peoples Temper: Contest for public natural space in urban landscapes Candidate: Stephenie Patricia Cahalan | 2016 |
| Masters | Would You Like Genes With That? Romanticism and the debate over genetically modified food Candidate: Liam James Gash | 2016 |
| PhD | We can help: An Australian case study of post-disaster online convergence and community resilience Candidate: Melanie Irons | 2015 |
| PhD | The Age of Consent: News, crime and public debate Candidate: Claire Marie Konkes | 2015 |
| PhD | Travel Journalism, Cosmopolitan Concern and the Place-Branded Environment Candidate: Lynette Carline McGaurr | 2013 |
| Masters | Lolita: Atemporal Class-Play with Tea and Cakes Candidate: Sophia Abigail Staite | 2012 |
| PhD | The Popular Political Documentary: Case Studies of Magnetic Media Candidate: Damian John McIver | 2010 |
| Masters | Hold the Presses: The Vision Unsplendid for Australian Newspapers Candidate: Bruce John Montgomery | 2009 |
| Masters | Theistic Existentialism in the Fiction of Tim Winton Candidate: Roie Thomas | 2008 |
| Masters | A Comparative Analysis of the Press Coverage of the Whaling Conflict in Australia and Japan in 2005-2006 Candidate: Mitsuru Kudo | 2008 |