On Friday, reporter Leslie Kaufman profiled anti-climate-change activist Marc Morano in "Dissenter on Warming Expands His Campaign - A Thorn in Climate Changers' Side [1]."
In contrast to Times profiles of liberal [2]activists [2]who want enormous political and lifestyle changes to combat global warming, Kaufman had nothing flattering to say about Morano. Mocking his personal appearance; Kaufman wrote that Morano "fills out his suit like a bulldog in a restraining jacket." She also hinted Morano is less than truthful about some of his confrontations, something the Times would never challenge a liberal on.
Marc Morano does not thinkglobal warmingis anything to worry about, and he brags about his confrontations with those who do.
For example, Mr. Morano said he once spotted former Vice PresidentAl Gore on an airplane returning from a climate conference in Bali. Mr. Gore was posing for photos with well-wishers, and Mr. Morano said he had asked if he, too, could have his picture taken with Mr. Gore.
He refused, Mr. Morano said.
"You attack me all the time," Mr. Gore said, according to Mr. Morano.
"Yes, we do," Mr. Morano said he had replied.
Mr. Gore's office said Mr. Gore had no memory of the encounter. Mr. Morano does not care. He tells the story anyway.
Kaufman explained that Morano, once a spokesman for Sen.James Inhofeknown for his e-mails to journalists debunking climate change, has started his own Web site, ClimateDepot.com.
In his work with Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Morano, whose thick build fills out his suit like a bulldog in a restraining jacket, did not hesitate to go after journalists he saw as biased. He promoted any study or statement that could be construed as cutting against the prevailing view that heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide contribute to global warming. Peter Dykstra, a former executive producer for CNN's science, environment and technology unit, recently called him the "drum major of the denial parade."
Mr. Morano may be best known for compiling a report listing hundreds of scientists whose work he says undermines the consensus on global warming.
But environmental advocates and bloggers say that many of those listed as scientists have no scientific credentials and that their work persuaded no one not already ideologically committed.
Kaufman uncovered Morano connections to two of the Times' favorite scary monsters: conservative cause financier Richard Mellon [3]Scaife [3]andenergy titanExxon [4].
Mr. Morano's new Web site is being financed by theCommittee for a Constructive Tomorrow, a nonprofit in Washington that advocates for free-market solutions to environmental issues....Public tax filings for 2003-7 - the last five years for which documents are available - show that the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the ExxonMobil Foundation and from foundations associated with the billionaireRichard Mellon Scaife, a longtime financer of conservative causes best known for its efforts to have PresidentBill Clintonimpeached.
Kaufman then tried to discredit Morano by linking him to another Times villain, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, who questioned John Kerry's record in Vietnam during the 2004 presidential campaign.
He then jumped to Cyber News Service, where he was the first to publish accusations from Vietnam Swift-boat veterans that SenatorJohn Kerryof Massachusetts, then the Democratic presidential nominee, had glorified his war record. Many of the accusations later proved unfounded.
Actually, despite what Times reporters like Kate Zernike [5]desperately want people to believe, none of the accusations made by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truthwere ever"proved unfounded." In fact, the Times and other media organizations never bothered to investigate the charges, simply assuming the Swifties were liars and Kerry was telling the truth, despite convincing evidence to the contrary - for instance, Kerry wasn't in Cambodia on Christmas [6]Eve 1968 [6], as he had long claimed.
Kaufman attempted some shrug-worthy debunking of a couple of the names on the list. For instance, she argued that a weather director in Kentucky is listed as a meteorologist on the report, even though he has no degree in meteorology.
As Noel Sheppard writes at NewsBusters even negative articles like this one are unacceptable for some purveyors of climate panic [7].