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I specifically look at how climate change skepticism in ExxonMobil, which knew about human-caused climate change as far back as 1977, and yet constructed a campaign of disinformation and denial in order to shroud the mounting scientific evidence.
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Transcript Provided by YouTube:
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climate change is now a polarizing issue
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in American politics while the
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environmental movement has long known
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that scientific evidence is an important
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part of convincing people and
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governments to take action their efforts
00:16
continue to be thwarted not only by
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outright denial ISM but also by a much
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more insidious version of climate change
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denial pseudo rational climate
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skepticism a campaign of disinformation
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from seemingly legitimate sources has
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stymied the climate movements efforts to
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educate the general public on climate
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change in part because it casts doubt on
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established climate science today
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instead of debunking climate change
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denial I’m going to explore climate
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skepticism and why had such a powerful
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factor in preventing climate action even
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when scientific studies continue to say
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that human caused climate change is a
00:53
reality in order to understand the power
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of climate change skepticism we need to
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first strip down the conservative
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climate change strategy to its core a
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fair amount of public voices that
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denounce the evidence of anthropogenic
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climate change are backed by a number of
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large conservative think tanks like the
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heartland or Cato Institute who have
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developed an anti environmental strategy
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that seeks to muddy research-based
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results by claiming that the science is
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quote unquote unsettled while also
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championing a need for more analysis
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this tactic works so well because
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climate deniers don’t necessarily have
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to provide a strong counter-argument
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refuting the growing evidence of
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human-caused climate change instead all
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they need to do is plant kernels of
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doubt in the public’s mind which
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ultimately blocks a majority consensus
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needed to create political change and
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with the use of official sounding names
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like the Cato Institute these unfounded
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claims seem even more legitimate these
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tactics take a page directly from the
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tobacco industry’s playbook from the
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1950s to the 1970s tobacco companies did
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not necessarily provide strong evidence
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through a few claims made against
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cigarettes so much as cast the needed
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amount of doubt on the research in order
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to delay policy change
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skeptics and the fossil fuels industry
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are finding success with very similar
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strategies take for example the case of
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Exxon Mobil in 1977 the scientific
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adviser of exons products research
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division
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James F Black gave a presentation to
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some company managers outlining the
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blunt truth that our use of fossil fuels
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was contributing to warmer global
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temperatures in the subsequent 10 years
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Exxon embarked on an intensive in-house
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scientific investigation that researched
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the validity of this claim the company
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even went so far as to outfit one of
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their super tankers the S o Atlanta k–
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with equipment to test carbon dioxide
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levels in the ocean exons research was
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extensive and the result of their
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computer models and tests confirmed what
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many other studies were already saying
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global temperatures would rise as a
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result of increased carbon dioxide
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release all of this was summed up in a
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43 page memo circulated within the
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company which was concerned with the co2
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greenhouse effect which is receiving
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increased attention in both the
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scientific and popular press as an
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emerging environmental issue in short
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ExxonMobil knew that the burning of
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fossil fuels contributes to a changing
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climate in 1977 despite this knowledge
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by the 1990s ExxonMobil had adopted a
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policy of climate change skepticism and
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disinformation among other methods the
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company published a number of ads that
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cast doubt on the established studies of
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the time and praise the importance of
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embracing skepticism Exxon also donated
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over 675 thousand dollars to the
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Heartland Institute from 1997 to 2006
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this think-tank spread scientific
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disinformation in many forms one of
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which included mailing 100,000 free
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copies of a book to people on Earth Day
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that claimed that climate science has
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been corrupted scepticism is a powerful
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tool in an era where mainstream news is
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dominated by concerns of profitability
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and controversy rather than
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evidence-based stories by constantly
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repeating that there still uncertainty
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or a need for
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you debate climate change skeptics
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continue to generate doubt about climate
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science without needing to substantiate
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any of their claims this unfortunately
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means that today the battle for climate
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action is not over facts but instead
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over whose voice is the loudest so
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climate change disinformation and
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skepticism can only continue to exist if
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we give it a microphone conducting the
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baits on how to deal with human caused
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climate change is fine but in order to
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move forward with strong climate policy
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we need to make clear that this form of
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skepticism is just another tool to delay
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essential climate action this video is
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made possible in part by the wonderful
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share it around and subscribe thanks so
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much for watching and I’ll see you next
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Friday
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This post was previously published on YouTube.