The US Weather Channel’s “climate change mission statement ” reads: “Throughout the world, people are confused about climate change and global warming, [the Weather Channel] will provide a place where sound science can be heard.” As regular DeSmog readers know, much of the confusion and doubt in the general public around the issue of climate change and the discussion around “sound science” has been at the hands of industry and oil company funded front groups.

Such groups serve the purpose of doing and saying the things a modern day corporation cannot get away with saying, like “C02, some call it pollution, we call it life. ” That’s the laughable tagline used by one such industry front group called the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a so-called US “think” tank that has received over $2 million dollars from ExxonMobil, the largest oil company in the world.

Now back to the Weather Channel and their valiant mission on climate change. The Weather Channel today announced their “2006 Hot List,” which in their own words “will bring focus to the people and organization (sic) who in 2006 most influenced climate policy, science and public opinion.” One would assume, based on their stated mission that their idea of a “hot list” would be chosen among the thousands of people, organizations and corporations effecting the climate change issue in a positive way. Not so, coming in at number 3 on the Weather Channel’s 2006 “hot list” is none other than the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

If the Weather Channel decides to promote such organizations as “influencing climate policy,” that’s fine, but at least look past the teflon coating of the CEI and list the group who is really influencing climate policy, ExxonMobil.

Just because I love the video so much, here’s CEI‘s climate guru Myron Ebell getting hammered in a recent BBC interview. If bumbling and stumbling over your oil industry interests makes you a “2006 Hot List” winner, then Ebell should have won the lifetime achievement award.