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Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate Science

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The Wikipedia Climate Conspiracy

Resident expert in climate denial at the National Post, Lawrence Solomon, penned a piece recently decrying Wikipedia's entry for science historian Noami Oreskes.

Oreskes is well known for her oft-quoted 2004 article in Science that found that out of a random sample of 928 research articles on climate change, not one questioned the consensus view that human activity is to blame.

Solomon got his hackles up when Wikipedia disallowed his edit of the Oreskes entry referring to a social anthropologist named Benny Peiser (well known to DeSmog), who apparently had "debunked" Oreskes original study. No mention of course that Peiser's "debunking" has never been published in a peer-reviewed journal, the normal route for which discourse and debate in science is undertook.

And rightly so.

According to blogger Tim Lambert, who has relentlessly grilled Peiser on his "research," Peiser admitted in October, 2006 that in his attempts to replicate Oreskes' original work, he only found one article that disagreed with the scientific conclusion of human-induced global warming, and that the single article he had found was NOT peer-reviewed research, but the proceedings of an annual report published by American Association of Petroleum Geologists.

So what's the problem Larry?

A world of wikiality and truthiness might work for Stephen Colbert, but please keep in mind that he's a satirist.

 

What's next?

About the climate cover-up

About the climate cover-up

Democracy is utterly dependent upon an electorate that is accurately informed. In promoting climate change denial (and often denying their responsibility for doing so) industry has done more than endanger the environment. It has undermined democracy.

There is a vast difference between putting forth a point of view, honestly held, and intentionally sowing the seeds of confusion. Free speech does not include the right to deceive. Deception is not a point of view. And the right to disagree does not include a right to intentionally subvert the public awareness.

Although all public relations professionals are bound by a duty to not knowingly mislead the public, some have executed comprehensive campaigns of misinformation on behalf of industry clients on issues ranging from tobacco and asbestos to seat belts.

Lately, these fringe players have turned their efforts to creating confusion about climate change. This PR campaign could not be accomplished without the compliance of media as well as the assent and participation of leaders in government and business.

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