Censorship of scientists cripples Australian climate debate
I am a five-decade career scientist and teach science students at a major Australian university. Like the overwhelming majority of scientists I am appalled by the worsening climate emergency and the huge gulf between the perception of reality by scientists and the erroneous public perceptions fed by Mainstream media, lobbyists and politicians in Lobbyocracy and Murdochracy Australia.
Scientists are typically employed by institutions or corporations and are consequently subject to considerable censorship and pressure for self-censorship. I belong to a small minority of scientists who are prepared to make science-informed comments in the public interest.
However, as the following example shows, even when scientists are prepared to make carefully-researched comments in the public interest they can be subject to egregious censorship if the science is not consonant with the dominant Mainstream media, lobbyist and politician "narrative".
1. Scientist evades the Media Wall of Silence
On Wednesday 29 June 2011 The Age On-line National Times section published an article by writer Jo Chandler about the attacks on scientists by climate change denialists and entitled “When science is undone by fiction” with by sub-heading “The myth of Climate-gate has endured because of media failings” (for the article and reader comments permitted by The Age see: http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/when-science-is-undone-by-fiction-20110628-1gp26.html).
Unfortunately, The Age, for whatever reasons, regularly censors science-informed comments to such articles made under his own name by Dr Gideon Polya (me), a five-decade-career biological chemist still teaching science students at a major Australian university. For details of the article plus science-informed reader comments that the The Age evidently did not want its readers to read see: http://gpolya.newsvine.com/_news/2011/06/28/6968199-oz-analyst-on-media-failure-re-climate-when-science-is-undone-by-fiction).
The Age actually published (possibly inadvertently) my initial comment providing three examples of “Elephant in the Room” climate change issues ignored by Mainstream media and politicians:
“There is a huge and dangerous gulf between reality as reported by Mainstream media and politicians and that perceived by scientists, especially in relation to required responses to man-made climate change
Just three examples of this Mainstream media and politician failure to acknowledge reality are given below.
1. According to Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber (Potsdam Institute, Germany), for a 67% chance of avoiding a catastrophic 2C temperature rise the World must cease CO2 emissions by 2050 and top per capita greenhouse gas (GHG) polluter such as the US and Australia must get to zero CO2 emissions by 2020 (9.5 years left).
2. According to the Australian Climate Commission’s "The Critical Decade" report, for a 75% chance of avoiding a 2C temperature rise the World can emit no more than 1 trillion tonnes of CO2 before reaching zero emissions in about 2050. Australia’s Domestic plus Exported GHG pollution means it must get to zero emissions before the end of 2012 (1.9 years left) or by the end of 2015 if one ignores Exported GHGs (4.6 years left).
3. Methane (CH4) leaks (3.3%) and is 105 times worse than CO2 as a GHG on a 20 year timeframe, this meaning that a Carbon Tax-driven coal to gas transition will double electric power industry GHG pollution."
2. Scientist is censored
The Age published the above comments but declined to publish the further examples I offered (while encouraging anti-science fiction by publishing several hundred comments by uncredentialed, non-scientist, anonymous bloggers):
In addition to the three “Elephant in the Room” climate-related realities given above that are resolutely ignored by Mainstream media and politicians, consider the following further examples of the Mainstream ignoring of climate-related science.
4. The species extinction rate is now 100-1,000 times greater than normal (Australia a word leader).
5. Leading scientists, economists and analysts slam the ETS approach as empirically ineffective, dangerously counterproductive and inherently fraudulent (Labor proposes to sell licences to pollute the one common atmosphere of all countries).
6. World Bank analysts have recently re-assessed annual global greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution as 50% bigger than hitherto thought and that the livestock contribution is over 51% of the bigger figure (Labor proposes to ignore agriculture).
7. Many (e.g. EU, Australia) support a 450 ppm CO2-equivalent and 2C temperature rise "cap". However the Synthesis Report of the 2,500-delegate March 2009 scientific Copenhagen Climate Conference indicates that we have already exceeded 450 ppm CO2-e and over 90% of delegates polled thought 2C was inevitable.
8. For voters, success in "tackling climate change" is measured in terms of DECREASED GHG pollution but it has INCREASED under Labor whose policies mean that Australia’s Domestic plus Exported GHG will be about 150% of 2000 level by 2020.”
3. Conclusion and prospects
Jo Chandler’s article concludes “”Recent surveys of active climate scientists (those publishing in the area) calculate that 97 in every 100 have views which reflect those of the international academies of science: the planet is warming, this is human caused, and it is dangerous. Most are unlikely to ever have the gift of this page to explain their findings. Therefore, a more balanced, rigorous and honest rendering of their work is critical to elevating the political and public debate on climate. ‘The media has a particular and important role to play,” said [new Chief Scientist of Australia] Chubb, ”and the sooner they play it better, the better."
However the above example shows that even The Age, arguably the most progressive Mainstream medium in Australia, continues to block informed, science-based views on the worsening climate crisis. For a chronological compendium recording the censorship of informed, credentialled, science-based views by The Age see the website “Censorship by The Age”: http://agecensors.blogspot.com/ .
Rational risk management successively involves (a) accurate information, (b) science-based analysis , and (c) informed systemic change to minimize risk.
Censorship and anti-science spin are preventing properly informed public discussion about man-made climate change and science-informed risk management in Lobbyocracy and Murdochracy Australia.
