Five minutes on FOX: MNN talks global warming with Neil Cavuto
On Earth Day, I spent five minutes under the hot lights at Fox Business News. It seems we're still debating whether climate change is real. Watch the video and let me know how I did.
Thu, Apr 23 2009 at 9:32 AM EST
20
Sometimes you get what you wish for. Earlier this week I was watching a Fox Network video online, and saw the Bill O’Reilly-esque host Stuart Varney making mincemeat of a Sierra Club guest on a subject I thought we’d all put to bed: Is global warming real?
“That poor guy,” I thought. “You have to be really aggressive when you’re on with Fox. If you’re trying to ‘explain’—with facts and figures that go over the audience’s head—you’re losing the argument. I wish I had a chance to go head-to-head with Fox.”
Well, yesterday I did.
Through my colleagues at E/The Environmental Magazine, I got the call to be on Fox Business News with host Neil Cavuto. I had my five minutes under the studio lights. Yes, on Earth Day. Again, the subject was the reality of global warming—plus the high cost to business of addressing it. Fox had gotten hold of a report—accurate enough—that sea ice has been thickening in Antarctica.
Indeed it is, and there are many possible explanations, but the Antarctica information in isolation is not all that helpful. The Arctic and Greenland ice sheets have seen unprecedented melting. According to Joseph Romm, the former Energy Department leader who blogs at ClimateProgress.org, the rate of glacial loss is a century ahead of where we thought we’d be at this point.
All the inland glaciers on the planet are melting, and Glacier National Park in Montana is now predicted to be ice-free by 2020. This is the warmest decade on record, and 2005 was the warmest year on record (2007 and 1998 are tied for second). Sea level could rise five feet by the end of the century, according to the prestigious journal Nature.
The Sierra Club, by the way, launched a campaign against Fox two years ago for its “consistent pattern of misinformation on global warming.” But its representatives still brave Fox’s cameras!
Take a look at the video and post a comment below on whether I held my own.
Related on MNN: Peter Dykstra on the hypocrisy of Fox News.
The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those
providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of
MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies
with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy
of any of their information.
 WorldShares
lets you earn donations for your favorite nonprofit. Earn up to 20
points now.Learn More Earn Points
|
Twitter
Stumble
Digg
Share
CLOSE
link:
link:
| Previous Post Does Earth Day "suck"? Nah. | Next Post Born to be wild: On Vespa's two wheels for the green of it |
Comments
monclerfashionshopper
08/26/2011 21:03 PM
giubbotti moncler speeded up the growth in several Olympic games. Because of the special designs, outlet moncler was noticed by the official supporters of the 10th French national Olympic held in Grenoble in 1968. Then .... More
GlenGodfrey
09/21/2010 08:32 AM
The agricultural revolution, where humans converted forests and range lands into farms, began to develop about 10,000 years ago. The current world population is 6,853,019,414 on July 1, 2010.The concentration of carbon dioxide increased 2.87 ppm in 1997-98, more than in any other year of record. Changing the term into something that more accurately describes the situation helps prevent a lot of misconceptions that ignorant people have about the term 'global warming'. What truly causes climate.... More
throw blankets
09/19/2010 05:14 AM
Thanks for sharing, I found this story while searching for rock lyrics, Not sure that this is true:), but thanks for a post.throw blankets,Thanks for sharing I’ll email my friends about this too.blanket throw,hey,I find that your blog is really instructive and useful and we were curious if there can be a possibility of getting.... More
Bill Hurley
07/13/2009 07:26 AM
Don't agree with Roger at all. People won't 'agree upon' getting off oil UNTIL they know the science is real.You have to address that. Environmentalists have often disregarded explaining this way precisely because they think it too technical for the average listener. So they just say "scientific consensus" and leave it
at that. As long as we respond this way, we're going to get Joe Bartons, Rush Limbaughs, and Fox news to deny any reality to the GW debate (according to ALL the media -.... More
Roger
05/22/2009 13:49 PM
I think it was a good interview but I'd really avoid engaging on the science (as it won't convince anyone) and talk more about solutions everyone can agree upon to get us off of oil and coal and how global warming policy furthers that.
Treebadger
05/14/2009 06:27 AM
great work jim, nice vid. Fox's continual misrepresentation and dare i say it lies regarding liberalism, environmentalism and global warming is just getting ridiculous. Its another form of Cominform and propaganda four no specific purpose apart from to keep the status quo.
Tommy Murphy, Ireland
04/27/2009 19:42 PM
Hi Jim, heard about you from Earthwatch newsletter, and I just watched the interview. You did very well. I loved the Elvis metaphor, it was very disarming. Did he have a dud single? I suggest you find out for the next time you use that line. When Neil said, "I don't mind if the CNN homes get flooded" in some small way alluded to the fact that he concedes somewhere in the smaller recesses of his mind that it might just be real!
Beth
04/24/2009 20:30 PM
Thanks for bringing facts and good-natured equanimity to the table. Cavuto certainly stuck to his script. So predictable.
Vanessa Hernandez
04/24/2009 15:31 PM
Man, you did very well against such doubtfulness! Every time he brought up "smart money" I wanted to rip my hair out. He's obviously not seeing the bigger picture here. Everyone argues that our future generations are going to be taxed to death but what's more important: money or a livable planet? I loved your last statement about not all of global warming being caused by us but that we do have the resources, knowledge, and technology to do our part! What's the harm in trying to save the planet?.... More
Bill Kovarik
04/23/2009 21:00 PM
"For years now we have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear ... with piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost always meant "Never." -- Martin Luther King, Letter from a Birmingham Jail, 1963.
Waiting for the right moment, when we have money, when there is no doubt whatsoever, is equally short sighted, as you note. There are rights at stake, public rights, and there are people already suffering. What's the cost of doing nothing? Good question. And in fact, what's the.... More
Jim Motavalli
04/23/2009 21:14 PM
Thanks, for the kind words, Bill. Yes, it's a terrible time to make global warming a priority. But, as you say, we can't wait!
larrydalooza
04/23/2009 17:15 PM
Wow... you people are very naughty with the name calling... shame shame... Now back the the holy shrine of AGW... where hypothesis and theory are fact.
Anonymous
04/23/2009 15:51 PM
How do you reason with such hard-headed insanity? You are a saint!
Jon M.
04/23/2009 15:38 PM
By staying calm and citing actual facts, you reduced your host to endlessly repeating his only two points: "maybe it won't really be bad, since it wasn't bad last winter," and "it might not be all our (humanity's) fault, so why should we clean it up?" It's hard to argue with idiocy, especially loud idiocy. The problem is the guy has viewers, so some people actually buy the drivel he's selling.
Jim Motavalli
04/23/2009 21:15 PM
I didn't see what was to gain by shouting. And I did have the facts on my side...
Jim Motavalli
04/23/2009 21:15 PM
I didn't see what was to gain by shouting. And I did have the facts on my side...
Grey Garvin
04/23/2009 13:58 PM
Jim, I only know you as the blogger I see talking about cars, but I have to tell you did a great job under (very) trying circumstances....better you than me, that's for sure.
Jeffrey
04/23/2009 12:38 PM
wow. AMAZING job keeping your cool with such a pushy, closed-minded *******. you presented great info, maintained your class, and it was clear who the narrow-minded biggot in the studio was. well done!
Shea Gunther
04/23/2009 11:36 AM
Neil Cavuto is a bucket of ignorant smarm. You did awesome Jim!
karoli.kuns
04/23/2009 11:23 AM
You must be a virtuous man. The interruptions alone drove me crazy -- the guy doesn't want to let you get a full sentence out. You did great, given the constant muting of your voice, but part of me wanted you to stare him down, tell him to shut up and let you get a full sentence out, a full argument in front of the viewers and stop being so focused on the bottom line.
