In light of recent Facebook notes (yes, that’s what our world is coming to), this week I’ve decided to tackle the topic of media and the environment. And before you tell me about how shitty the media is, you don’t have to. I know. It’s thrown in my face almost every day that I’m a couple years away from working in an industry that loves little more than celebrity gossip and murders.
And now that being green is the new black, the media are finally turning their cameras toward the issue.
After years of schooling, journalists receive a diploma and tattoos of “get both sides of the story” carved into their wrists and the word “controversy” in a heart after they crossed out “Mom.” However, both sides don’t exist for every story, and this is usually the case when it comes to stories on scientific reports that are based on consensus.
The media are also obsessed with controversy. At times, we try to create doubt and raise questions when the issue has already been settled. I’m not advocating that journalists silence themselves, but when we try to find the other side to a scientific consensus, we usually end up finding a source that lacks valid credentials.
This has happened on several Web sites that dispute the science of global warming, such as junkscience.com. Steven Milloy runs this site and is the commentator for the site on FoxNews.com. Not surprising.
Recently, Junk Science’s main feature has been trying to get Al Gore to debate “climatologists” that Milloy rounded up. So far, Al Gore has refused, further riling up the critics.
It’s no wonder Al Gore has refused. Some of these so-called climatologists have pretty-sounding degrees from wonderful institutions, but they are simply cronies who are now paid by Big Oil and Big Business. The most notorious on the panel is Fred Singer, a man who has a PhD from Princeton, but no longer uses his scientific judgment to further the truth. Last semester, a good portion of one of my environmental policy classes was devoted to talking about Singer’s background.
Singer, along with Milloy and most likely others in the group, have close ties with the oil and tobacco industries. And ironically enough, they spread false claims about global warming and the links between smoking and cancer.
The New Republic found out that Philip Morris (one of the world’s largest tobacco companies) pays Milloy even though FoxNews presented him as an independent journalist.
On the environmental side, the Union of Concerned Scientists discovered that non-profit organizations operating out of Milloy’s home invested millions of dollars to manufacture doubt about global warming. In a few instances, these non-profits didn’t have any staff and received huge amounts of money from ExxonMobil. This also occurred during Milloy’s time with FoxNews.
It is absolutely disgusting that this is where some people get their news, and that this type of behavior is accepted by some media companies.
As a future journalist, I am always intrigued by tracing the way that money and information exchange hands. And as a citizen, you should be concerned about it.
Always question your sources. Find out where their salary comes from and see how that correlates to their opinions.
Be wary of this site too. I list my sources whenever possible, and if you ever want more information, please ask. Unfortunately, I’m not being paid.
Journalists are only the steps in between—they are not the sources of information. Look to see where your news is coming from, not necessarily at the media outlet, but at the person with the big wallet behind the voice.
Upton Sinclair really tied it all together when he said, “It’s hard to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on him not understanding it.”
And now on with your regularly scheduled post (shortened for the sake of brevity):
Three Things You Can Do This Week:
1. Just Say H2No
Some people buy bottled water because they claim that it tastes better than tap water, but both PepsiCo (Aquafina) and the Coca-Cola Company (Dasani) were forced to reveal that their bottled water comes from the tap. Full stories here and here (originally published by Reuters).
why: Most plastic bottles are thrown away, increasing waste and reducing landfill space. Companies claim that new designs have tremendously cut down the amount of plastic needed per bottle, but simply buying a reusable thermos is more energy-efficient in the long run.
economic cents: Why pay for the same water twice? If water from your tap tastes bad, try a water purifier (about $20).
2. 100-Mile Diet
A big push of the environmental movement now is to find out how far your food had to travel to get to your dinner table. A commonly cited statistic is that a strawberry requires five times energy to transport it than you get from eating it.
why: Food transportation is usually done by trucking, releasing thousands of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
economic cents: I'll be honest here, most organically grown or local food is not always cheaper. But by purchasing locally grown food, you are supporting the local economy. Try going to your city's farmers' market. More information about Lawrence's market here.
3. Read the label.
If you want to be a responsible green consumer, you have to know what you're buying.
why: Labels claiming that a product is eco-friendly is hardly regulated and can either be placed on the product by governmental or private organizations. The most trustworthy labels include EnergyStar (electronics and appliances), Fair Trade Certified (food), and USDA Organic (not always completely reliable, but a good start).
economic cents: Reading the label doesn't cost anything more than your time. And that's usually a good investment because you will come out buying a healthier, more natural product.
The blog will back in its full-length glory next week.
"So you're going trick-or-treating as what, angry blogger?"
LK
2 comments:
way to be a good journalist.
boooooo bottled water.
While I can get real stirred up on politics, I am an environmentalist/conservationist. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have the country sometimes. I’ve lived in nothing but polluter cities, full of s.u.v.’s. I drive a ford focus, which actually has pretty low emissions.
I still think Al Gore is a pretentious, preachy prick, but that may be a subject for disagreement. I won’t be sold on global warming for a long time, but I am more than in support of bettering the environment and seeking alternate energy sources.
One thing I question is nuclear energy. It was ran out years ago by environmentalists, but would it be better…? It’d be a quick fix to a lot if managed by the right people, but that’s a big if...
By the way, bottled water is a crock of shit. It's worse in Europe. That's all they've got.
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