Photograph by Cory Richards
A polar bear stands sentinel on Rudolf Island in Russia’s Franz Josef Land archipelago, destination of a multidisciplinary scientific expedition in the summer of 2013.
"Arguing about the basic science gets us nowhere
Scientists are as certain that industrial activities are causing climate change as they are that smoking causes lung disease. They have robust estimates of how much heat industrial emissions are trapping in our atmosphere. It’s clear that recent climate change is not natural.
So while asking politicians whether or not they accept those facts is certainly useful, the public also deserves to know what politicians are going to do about the consequences of climate change and how they want to shape our country’s energy mix."
So writes Aaron Huertas , in a riveting but overlooked piece on the Union of Concerned Scientists blog.
In 2012, not one question regarding the civilization threatening issue of climate change was asked by moderators of the 3 major debates between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. This despite the fact that the Arctic was melting before our very eyes, droughts were occurring, temperatures were at record breaking levels and the Military had come out stating that climate change was a very dangerous threat to our national security. Heck even the CIA was scared to death of it at that time. see From the Guardian regarding CIA and Military efforts regarding Global warming:
The CIA late last year established a centre to collect intelligence on climate change. Earlier this month, CIA officials sent emails to environmental experts in Washington seeking their views on climate change impacts around the world, and how the agency could keep tabs on what actions countries were taking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The CIA has also restarted a programme – scrapped by George Bush – that allowed scientists and spies to share satellite images of glaciers and Arctic sea ice.
But not one peep out of Candy Crowley, Jim Lehrer, Bob Schieffer, who had the journalistic duty to ask sharp questions. How sad and embarrassing for them.
After the last debate, Candy Crowley addressed the concerns of the "climate people".
"I had that question for all of you climate change people. We just, you know, again, we knew that the economy was still the main thing so you knew you kind of wanted to go with the economy."
For 2016, questions needs to be asked of Republicans (as well as some of the fossil fuel bought and paid for Democrats) such as John Boehner who stated “let scientists debate…” the phenomenon of climate change and of Marco Rubio who stated climate science “is not well-established.” that go beyond whether Climate Change is real.
Some suggestions for journalists from the Union of Concerned Scientists blog.
Anticipate Dodges and Misinformation
CNN’s Jake Tapper did this effectively when he moderated a Florida gubernatorial debate. He anticipated Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s previous dismissive statement about climate science (“I’m not a scientist”) and got the candidates to debate policy, instead.
Ask About Climate Risks
Moderators did this at three gubernatorial debates in Florida, Maryland, and Virginia and the results were encouraging; they garnered substantive responses instead of polarized arguments about established science.
Ask About Energy Policy
Even politicians who reject climate science often support clean energy. For instance, Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) has dismissed climate science and also vocally supports wind power. Many politicians simply aren’t monolithic on these issues, including Democrats who favor climate action along with policies that promote fossil fuels.
Ask Who Pays for Climate Risks?
A Republican legislator in Virginia is proposing using a carbon price to help pay for dealing with sea level rise in his state. The federal flood insurance system is under increased strain as sea levels rise around increasingly valuable coastal property. And in Oregon, the state is re-negotiating wildfire insurance policy. Where do politicians stand on paying for climate-related damages? Is it on property owners? Taxpayers? Polluting businesses?
Give the Audience the Facts
Finally, journalists can simply note to their audience that politicians who reject climate science are incorrect. Jake Tapper did that during an interview with Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) before moving onto another topic. That’s better than letting misinformation about established science go unchecked.