Green dies in darkness? environmental externalities of newspaper closures

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Jiang, John Xuefeng; Kong, Jing
• 署名单位: Michigan State University; Michigan State University's Broad College of Business; University of Michigan System; University of Michigan
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ACCOUNTING STUDIES
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1380-6653
• DOI: 10.1007/s11142-023-09786-5
• 发表日期: 2024
• 页码: 3564-3599
• 关键词: CORPORATE GOVERNANCE; air-pollution; Media slant; press; INFORMATION; IMPACT; entry

摘要

U.S. industrial plants emit around four billion pounds of toxic chemicals annually, posing health and economic risks. This study investigates the role of newspapers in influencing plants' toxic emissions. We use local newspaper closures as an exogenous shock to news coverage and observe a 10% increase in emissions in affected counties, compared to plants owned by the same firm in other counties. Our findings indicate that this increase is not attributable to variations in environmental policies among firms, disparate economic conditions across counties, or heightened production levels at these facilities. Instead the rise in toxic emissions is driven by an elevated amount of toxins emitted per unit of output. We also uncover that the observed effect is more pronounced in areas with a lower newspaper-to-population ratio before the closure and in communities more concerned about environmental issues. Moreover, we find that the spread of online media doesn't mitigate the consequences of newspaper closures on toxic emissions. This research provides causal evidence that local newspapers monitor and reduce firms' harmful environmental practices.