Under the green veil

greenwashing in the new media paradigm

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21680/2447-0198.2026v10n1ID41950

Keywords:

sustainability, environmental information, greenwashing, attention economy, disinformation

Abstract

Introduction: The intensification of extreme weather events and the imminence of ecological collapse have fueled discourses on sustainability and green consumption. However, these values have been gradually appropriated by marketing and the logic of the attention economy, resulting in the trivialization of the environmental agenda and the spread of greenwashing practices. In this scenario, where the digital environment is consolidated as the main space for information consumption, the way we produce, disseminate, and absorb content directly influences our perception of ethics, the environment, and collective responsibility. Objective: This article seeks to analyze the contradictions between the discourse and practice of sustainability in the information age, highlighting how green rhetoric becomes an instrument of alienation. Methodology: The research, of a qualitative and exploratory nature, is based on bibliographic and documental research and analysis. Results: The results indicate that the symbolic consumption of sustainability misinforms, presenting serious consequences in the informational and environmental spheres. Conclusion: It is concluded that ethical information governance is an essential axis for rethinking the role of communication and technologies in building a critical and emancipatory environmental awareness.

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Author Biography

Adriane Louise Barbosa Macêdo, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco

Bacharela em Biblioteconomia, Mestranda em Ciência da Informação no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciência da Informação da Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. Atua em pesquisa, docência e projetos nas áreas de: Informação e Sociedade, Informação e Meio Ambiente, Informação Mediada por Inteligência Artificial Generativa, Produção e Uso da Informação, Estudos Métricos da Informação e Genealogia Intelectual. Atua como pesquisadora e colaboradora do grupo de pesquisa Scientia, do grupo Educação, Pesquisa e Produção Científica, e do grupo Estudos Epistemológicos da Informação (EEI). 

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Published

09-07-2026

How to Cite

MACÊDO, Adriane Louise Barbosa. Under the green veil: greenwashing in the new media paradigm. Revista Informação na Sociedade Contemporânea, Natal, v. 10, n. 1, p. e41950, 2026. DOI: 10.21680/2447-0198.2026v10n1ID41950. Disponível em: https://periodicos.ufrn.br/informacao/article/view/41950. Acesso em: 17 sep. 2026.

Issue

Section

Dossiê “Informação socioambiental: perspectivas da integração entre informação, meio ambiente e saúde para o bem-estar”

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