Fakegate Fallout
The Fakegate fallout is getting worse for DeSmogBlog.
Roger Pielke Jr. put it most succinctly:
If the faked document happened to be produced by a climate activist or scientist (as some are already suggesting), then the leaked Heartland documents will go down in history as one of the more spectacular own goals in the history of the climate debate (with the consequences proportional to the stature of the faker). The faking is likely to overshadow whatever legitimate questions may have been raised by the release of the documents. Imagine what would have happened if the UEA hacker/leaker had made up a few emails to spice up the dossier.
Whether or not DeSmogBlog knew the document was fake, they are the ones taking the heat for releasing it to the world as a peek into the supposed dark heart of the Heartland Institute. Theft and fakery have become the story. Heartland is raising money from the event, and still no-one is impressed with the relatively small amounts of cash that were supposed to be the ‘gotcha’ against Heartland.
The funniest thing about all this is that DeSmogBlog is run by a PR firm. Will anyone ever hire them again?
The tagline on DeSmog reads:
Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate Science
It should read:
Creating the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate Science
Anthony:
February 18th, 2012 at 10:16 am
Here here!
mikegeo:
February 18th, 2012 at 11:44 am
Thr guy that founded and runs DESMOG IS James Hoggan – chairman of the David Suzuki Foundation. Need we say more?
DirkH:
February 18th, 2012 at 1:35 pm
A PR person has to accurately assess his target demographic. DeSmogBlog probably came to the conclusion that their audience and the supporters of the David Suzuki Foundation are so stupid that cheap fakes completely suffice to drive up the revenue.
Expect more exciting fakes real soon now.
papertiger:
February 18th, 2012 at 6:06 pm
Somebody named Steven Hulme, writing for the Vancouver Sun, is very impressed with Desmog Blog’s PR gaff.
The Heartland Institute, rather than welcoming this exposure as a public service, squeals loudly about theft and blusters about criminal investigations. Meanwhile, the blogosphere crackles with irreverent observations that these documents appear to be evidence of the think-tank’s own cynical attempts to manufacture doubt about global warming. In fact, some claim the documents point to a nefarious scheme to subvert the teaching of class-room science.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Hume+Fake+skeptics+climate+change+swayed+good+science/6174934/story.html#ixzz1mm9PnL23
Dude bought it totally. Didn’t even care to check beyond whatever Desmog scribbled.
Interesting, the article is filed under technology and is carefully void of comment or talk back feature.
Hulme is a British expat whose first love is poetry. I guess he couldn’t make a go of that, so naturally he became a newspaper liar.
papertiger:
February 18th, 2012 at 6:17 pm
Ah shoot. The second sentence/paragraph before the read more link should be italicized to note that is from the article Hulme wrote.
I think Steven would be a prime target for another fake cache of “damning emails” highlighting the nefarious doings and goings on with Team Sceptic.
He’s sure to buy in. He’ll buy anything.
Doug Proctor:
February 19th, 2012 at 6:01 pm
The problem for DeSmogBlog and Hansen, and Mann and all the others, is that the “smoking gun” Heartland document is a fake, with legal action following. All the Climategate e-mails were impossible to claim as fake as they weren’t. The worst that the Team could say was that they were “stolen”, though if a public ownership issue, then they couldn’t be stolen but just inappropriately released, and that they were being interpreted out of context, which is a big stretch (especially with release of the second batch).
The followup letter from Mann et al opens up the problem that Hansen and others refused to participate in skeptic conferences, although Heartland is reprimanded for not being open to discussion.
The Fakegate incident could, if some MSM chose to, force warmists and skeptics onto the same platform. But it won’t, because the MSM won’t put the challenge out. You don’t want to encourage the dogs to do their business on your own carpet.
Rick:
February 20th, 2012 at 9:03 am
I read Hume’s article in the Sun and just about choked on my lunch. What an idiot although he drank the kool-aid a long time ago.
Fakegate: DeSmogBlog’s epic fail « The Daily Bayonet:
February 27th, 2012 at 9:40 am
[...] moment of glory after they revealed the Heartland Institute’s documents took only days to blow up in their faces, and they’ve been playing defense ever [...]