Readers' Forum: Climate science in media
Recently the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has analysed the major cable news networks’ climate science coverage in 2013 and found that each network treated climate science very differently. The result shows that Fox News was the least accurate; 72 percent of its 2013 climate science-related segments contained misleading statements. CNN was in the middle, with 30 percent inaccuracy; while MSNBC was the most accurate, with only eight percent of segments containing misleading statements.
The above finding shows how the public are being served misleading information about climate science. Climate change facts are based on scientific evidences and the negative impact of climate change is visible in all parts of the world which include increase in temperature, rising of sea level, natural calamities like drought, cyclone, tidal surge, etc.
Hence, coverage on both international and national media should not generate debate on whether the climate change science is real or utopian, but initiate discussion on how to address the negative impact of climate change which is already a scientifically proven fact.
The above finding shows how the public are being served misleading information about climate science. Climate change facts are based on scientific evidences and the negative impact of climate change is visible in all parts of the world which include increase in temperature, rising of sea level, natural calamities like drought, cyclone, tidal surge, etc.
Hence, coverage on both international and national media should not generate debate on whether the climate change science is real or utopian, but initiate discussion on how to address the negative impact of climate change which is already a scientifically proven fact.
Professor M Zahidul Haque,
SAU, Dhaka.