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Climate Progress

How Drudge Pumps The Marc Morano Jokers

Drudge JokersRecently, the Wonk Room unmasked the fifty-two men who work with Marc Morano, the environmental communications director for Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), to obfuscate the threat and deny the scientific consensus of man-made global warming. This core network of conspiracy theorists and right-wing media operatives generate stories for broadcast by the conservative media network, from Glenn Beck to George Will. But one other man is especially responsible for getting their work out — Matt Drudge. Drudge is a masterful editor, countering real headlines of the climate crisis with tales of “global cooling” and scientific skepticism.

As it turns out, practically every single one the Drudge Report’s headlines of climate misinformation uses a story constructed by Morano’s minions, as the following review of recent Drudge Report headlines reveals:

How Drudge Pumps The Morano Jokers
Drudge Headline Morano Joker Participation
Obama climate czar has socialist ties; Group sees 'global governance'... [1/12/09] Steven Milloy, Noel Sheppard
...with near 125-year record breaking low temps [10/23/08] Lubos Motl
Global Cooling? - 'Thirty years of warmer temperatures go poof'... [10/20/08] Don Easterbrook, David Douglass, John Christy
Old Farmers Almanac: Global cooling may be underway... [9/10/08] Joseph D’Aleo
Group Repping 50,000 Physicists Opens Global Warming Debate... [7/17/08] Christopher Monckton, Michael Asher
Temperature Monitors Report Worldwide Global Cooling... [2/26/08] Michael Asher, Anthony Watts, John Christy

Every single member of this deck of jokers was involved in the creation and dissemination of Marc Morano’s magnus opus, a sprawling PDF headlined “UN Blowback: More Than 650 Scientists Dissent Over Warming Claims,” released December 10, 2008. And so it appeared on the Drudge Report that very day:

Drudge: Blowback

Climate Progress

REVEALED: Marc Morano’s Pack Of Climate Denial Jokers

JokersMarc Morano, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK)’s environmental communications director, sits at the center of the right-wing global warming denier propaganda machine — of fifty-two people. Conservative columnist Fred Barnes recently refused to tell TPM Muckraker who’s informed him “the case for global warming” is falling apart, but all signs point to Marc Morano. Morano’s “entire job,” Gristmill’s David Roberts explains, “is to aggregate every misleading factoid, every attack on climate science or scientists, every crank skeptical statement from anyone in the world and send it all out periodically in email blasts” to the right-wing echo chamber. The Wonk Room has acquired Morano’s email list, and we can now reveal the pack of climate skeptics, conservative bloggers, and corporate hacks who feed the misinformation machine.

Promoted on the Drudge Report and Fox News, Morano’s moronic misinformation enters mainstream discourse through columns by Barnes, George Will, Robert Samuelson, and others. Many in the Morano gang are funded by right-wing think tanks, though a few are committed activists, conspiracy theorists who believe their homebrew interpretations of climate data. Others are aging scientists with strong conservative beliefs, motivating them to challenge action on global warming not because they disbelieve its existence, but because they are ideologically opposed to regulation of pollution:

Marc Morano’s Pack Of Climate Denial Jokers
Marc Morano, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), Committee on the Environment and Public Works
The Scientists
Name Website Affiliations
Bob Carter James Cook University, Queensland, Australia
John Christy University of Alabama at Huntsville
David Deming University of Oklahoma /
National Center for Policy Analysis
David Douglass University of Rochester
Don Easterbrook Western Washington University
Stanley Goldenberg NOAA
Vincent Gray New Zealand Climate Science Coalition /
Natural Resources Stewardship Project
William Gray Colorado State University (ret.)
Ben Herman University of Arizona
Craig Idso co2science.org Arizona State University /
Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change
Richard Lindzen Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Roger Pielke Colorado State University (ret.)
James A. Peden Extranuclear Laboratories (ret.)
Hans Schreuder ilovemycarbondioxide.com Rocky Mountain Research Station
Thomas P. Sheahen Western Technology, Inc.
Fred Singer University of Virginia (ret.) /
Science and Environmental Policy Project /
National Center for Policy Analysis
Roy Spencer drroyspencer.com University of Alabama at Huntsville /
Marshall Institute /
Interfaith Stewardship Alliance
Philip Stott University of London (ret.)
Willie Wei-Hock Soon Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics /
Marshall Institute /
Fraser Institute /
Science and Public Policy Institute
Brian Valentine Department of Energy
The Bloggers
Michael Asher dailytech.com
Joseph Bast globalwarmingheartland.org Heartland Institute
Edward John Craig planetgore.nationalreview.com National Review
Dan Gainor newsbusters.org Media Research Center
Barry Hearn junkscience.com
Steven Milloy junkscience.com Competitive Enterprise Institute
Tom Nelson tomnelson.blogspot.com
Lubos Motl motls.blogspot.com Harvard University (ret.)
Roger Pielke, Jr. sciencepolicy.colorado.edu University of Colorado
Jon Jay Ray jonjayray.blogspot.com
Gabriel Rychert co2sceptics.com
Marc Sheppard opinioneditorials.com Frontiers of Freedom
Noel Sheppard newsbusters.org Media Research Center
Matthew Sheffield newsbusters.org Media Research Center
Anthony Watts wattsupwiththat.com
surfacestations.org
The “Think Tankers”
Dennis Avery hudson.org Hudson Institute
Mike Burita accf.org American Council for Capital Formation
Terry Dunleavy climatescience.org.nz New Zealand Climate Science Coalition
Robert Ferguson scienceandpublicpolicy.org Science and Public Policy Institute
Tom Harris climatescienceinternational.org International Climate Science Coalition
Christopher Monckton scienceandpublicpolicy.org Science and Public Policy Institute
Craig Rucker cfact.org Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
James Taylor heartland.org Heartland Institute
The Weathermen
William M. Briggs wmbriggs.com statistician
Richard S. Courtney CoalTrans International (ret.)
Joseph D’Aleo icecap.us Weather Channel (ret.)
Art Horn theartofweather.com weatherman (ret.)
Alan Siddons
George E. Smith Monsanto, Hewlett Packard (ret.)
James Spann jamesspann.com weatherman, ABC 33/40
Herb Stevens weatherman (ret.)

The Scientists: Ph.D.s, often with strong industry ties, who may or may not have experience in climate science, but are ready to denounce the scientific consensus

The Bloggers: They flood the Web with “news” and opinion, ready to be picked up by Drudge, Fox News, and the rest of the right-wing echo chamber

The “Think Tankers”: Ready spokesmen associated with impressive-sounding organizations, often founded by themselves

The Weathermen: Meteorologists, statisticians, and corporate scientists not associated with a think tank or university, but happy to give reporters their “expert” opinion

Update

Newsbusters‘ Noel Sheppard responds, “I’m sure I speak for all my fellow jokers when I say that I am honored to be mentioned with these highly-respected climate realists.”


Update

,George E. Smith (gsmith@avagotech.com) writes in to inform the Wonk Room that he is not the George E. Smith formerly of Bell Labs who invented the charged coupled device. In fact, this Smith is a different inventor with “no discernible experience in climate or earth sciences.” He writes: “I think you owe George E. Smith, Bell Labs (ret) an apology.” The Wonk Room agrees, and apologizes for sullying that George E. Smith’s reputation.


Update

,DeSmogBlog is “working to research the individuals on Morano’s list” and compiling this handy referral guide; we’re linking the names to their backgrounders as they’re added.


Update

,In an email interview spurred by John Tierney’s attack on Obama’s scientists that cites “Obamite” Roger Pielke Jr., Pielke compares me to Joe McCarthy.


Update

,Brian Valentine writes in to inform the Wonk Room that it is he, not Phil Valentine, who regularly corresponds with Marc Morano. Our apologies to Mr. Valentine, whose conservative radio show describes global warming as a swindle.

Phil Valentine is not an associate of Marc Morano.

I am an ethusiatic Morano supporter – as well as an absolute denialist.

Brad you are picking on the wrong people – and you’re making a MISTAKE.

You never know! You might be missing some really great material!

I might be a fraudulent PhD!

I might be a stooge for Exxon-Mobil!

I might be out ther helping to expose the fraud you are promulgating!

Brian G Valentine PhD PE
US Department of Energy
Washington, DC


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