by Kevin Killough
State Energy Reporter
A new report examines alleged misinformation in the media on the relationship between natural disasters and climate change.
The report uses a number of examples from major media outlets where journalists attribute natural disasters to climate change when there is no evidence to support the claim or the evidence points in the opposite direction.
Yellowstone Floods
Among the examples listed in “Climate Fact Check 2022” of reporters wrongly attributing climate change to natural disasters is last summer’s historic flooding in Yellowstone National Park…
Steve Milloy, an adjunct analyst with CEI, told Cowboy State Daily that many journalists just assume natural disasters are caused by climate change and don’t bother questioning their assumptions.
“I think that reporters have gotten … I guess a charitable description would be lazy,” Milloy said. “And so anytime something bad happens, they just automatically blame it on climate change. There’s no thinking going on anymore.”
Milloy, a biostatistician and environmental and public health consultant, is the founder and publisher of JunkScience.com. He served on the EPA transition team for the Trump administration, has authored several books on scientific misinformation and published hundreds of articles in major newspapers.
