In global warming special, Fox interviews scientists with industry ties

[jpak]

http://mediamatters.org/items/200605190003

Summary: On May 21, Fox News will air a one-hour special, Global Warming: The Debate Continues, in which host David Asman will "speak with scientists who are skeptical of what they view as alarmist fears about climate change." Among the roster of contributors are several global warming skeptics with ties to the energy industry and records of misinformation on the issue.

On May 21, Fox News will air a one-hour special, Global Warming: The Debate Continues, in which host David Asman will "speak with scientists who are skeptical of what they view as alarmist fears about climate change." Among the roster of contributors are several global warming skeptics with ties to the energy industry and records of misinformation on the issue. In each case, their statements or studies questioning global warming theory have been debunked or proven misleading by the scientific community. It remains to be seen whether Asman will inform viewers of these records or of their associations with institutions funded by companies that have a financial stake in opposing policies that seek to combat climate change.

Global Warming: The Debate Continues follows Fox News' The Heat is On: The Case of Global Warming, a November 13 special that was heavily criticized by conservatives. It drew attention from two divisions of the conservative Media Research Center -- CNSNews.com (here and here) and the Business & Media Institute -- and Accuracy in Media editor Cliff Kincaid wrote a column blasting Fox News for running the special.

The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a Washington, D.C.-based think tank heavily funded by corporate interests, asked Fox News to revise The Heat is On before it aired. As a January 16 Washington Post article reported, "The Competitive Enterprise Institute, which widely publicizes its belief that the earth is not warming cataclysmically because of the burning of coal and oil," says Exxon Mobil Corp. is a "major donor" largely as a result of its effort to push that position.

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[Lithos]

1. Fox

Home of the corporate infomercial. Just as accurate as the crap spewed forth at 2 AM on the off-cable channels.

L-

[eppur_se_muova]

3. At least the LaRouche infomercials were (indeliberately) amusing. nt

[Dogmudgeon]

2. Der Stössel has an understudy

Just what we need.

--p!

[seasat]

4. I read Media Matter's link on the cast of clowns that fox parades

Patrick McMicheal is also known for taking other peoples data and lying about it. He took a graphic from one of Jim Hansen's papers where Hansen was demonstrating how certain forcings were necessary to achieve closure with the past climate record. Hansen presented a number of scenarios and showed how when the right forcings were included the model matched the record. McMicheals took that graphic and deleted the model that matched and showed the one that used improper forcings. He then presented that in testimony to the Senate. That is just low-life scum and he should not be allowed to refer to himself as a scientist.

Cristy and Spencer are quite a pair. They were claiming that their data from microwave emissions detected by a satellite showed no warming in the troposphere and that it matched radiosonde data. They didn't correct properly for drift in the satellite's orbit (kinda important when you're looking at the lower 4 km of the atmosphere from about 120 km above the surface). The really bad mistake though, was their processing of the radiosonde data they got the sign wrong in a calculation and had the troposphere warming at night and cooling during the day. They didn't realize this until others pointed out their mistake. Great scientists for Faux to interview.