Discussions about ecological and social issues are becoming “more heated and politically charged”, according to analysis conducted by Cision. It analysed articles in traditional media as well as posts on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit and Tumblr in English, Spanish, French, German and Italian between January 2020 and June 2023.

Significant differences were identified in the emphasis placed on the key elements of ESG internationally, with most countries focused on social issues, including human rights violations, racism, LGBTQ rights and wokeism.

In Germany the focus is very much on the environment and climate: during Cision’s assessment period, ecological issues increased by 74 per cent, social issues only by 8 per cent and corporate governance issues by even less at 6 per cent. The ecological topics focus on climate protests, heatwaves and politics, such as the new climate protection law. A total of 29 per cent of the feelings and sentiments across all ESG media contributions are negative, being characterised by anger, disgust, sadness or fear.

"Companies are becoming more and more transparent due to the increasing ESG reporting requirements, while at the same time being confronted to a somewhat greater extent with accusations of greenwashing. In terms of communications, they should show a clear stance on ESG issues and give specific examples of their progress," said Manuela Schreckenbach, head of insights consulting, DACH at Cision.

In all the languages analysed, the topic of corporate governance is only rarely mentioned in the context of ESG reporting. However, the analysis clearly shows that protests and politics determine the ESG agenda.

Share Story: