Thursday, May 10, 2007

Has the Media Completely foregone all objectivity?   [Sterling Burnett]

Has the media completely lost objectivity and the search for the "truth" with regard to the issue of global warming. The latest reason that made me ponder this question arose with the "non-story" of the recent reports by MIT  and the CBO detailing the substantial costs and regressive nature of the costs that are estimated to arise if any of the current domestic proposals restricting carbon emissions to combat global warming are enacted. Despite the best efforts of Senator James Inhofe, among others, to get these studies publicized, I have barely seen a mention of the findings of either of these reports in the mainstream media (print or broadcast). These reports should offer sobering news to anyone who cares at all about continued economic growth or the effects of legislation upon the poor — even to those who think humans are causing potentially catastrophic climate change.

By comparison, the now thoroughly discredited Stern report and the recent IPCC report on the costs of combating climate change were front page news.

On perhaps no other issue than global warming is the media so ready to highlight panglossian, completely unrealistic, studies that basically say that the government efforts can be efficient, effective and deliver benefits far exceeding their costs. Usually, if it bleeds it leads, but the MIT and CBO reports, despite delivering bad news — there is no free lunch; efforts to halt global warming will will be costly — have been met with a collective yawn by the press.

It does not surprise me that environmental "journalists" have largely ignored these reports since many of them long ago decided that, on the issue of climate change, the debate was over justifying advocacy "journalism." But it has surprised me how economic and science reporters have also ignored the MIT and CBO reports.

Perhaps, my family and freind's fears that I have am more jaded than naive are misplaced.

05/10 05:19 PMShare