The Climate Denial Machine vs. Climate Science (2013)
A brief history of attacks on climate science, climate scientists, and the IPCC, by Cindy Baxter.
Dealing in Doubt (pdf) was authored by Cindy Baxter in 2013. The report describes organized attacks on climate science, scientists and scientific institutions like the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (the IPCC), that have gone on for more than 20 years. It sets out some of the key moments in this campaign of climate denial started by the fossil fuel industry, and traces them to their sources.
The tobacco industry’s misinformation and PR campaign in the United States against regulation reached a peak just as laws controlling tobacco were about to be introduced. Similarly, the campaign against climate change science — and scientists — has intensified as global policy on climate change has become more likely. This time though there is a difference. The corporate PR campaign has gone viral, spawning a denial movement that is distributed, decentralized and largely immune to reasoned response.
Dealing in Doubt was first written by Cindy Baxter and published by Greenpeace International in 2010. In 2013, Cindy revised and updated the report for Greenpeace USA, with more information, and illustrations by Thomas Avila.
Download the 2013 Dealing in Doubt report (pdf).
Download the 2010 Dealing in Doubt report (pdf)
Greenpeace blogs announcing Dealing in Doubt reports:
- Cindy Baxter, As climate denial gets stronger, the “dealing in doubt” continues, Greenpeace USA, September 10, 2013
- Mike Gaworecki, Dealing in Doubt, Greenpeace USA, March 25, 2010
External Coverage of Dealing in Doubt reports:
- Amy Goodman and Dennis Moynihan, Like Big Tobacco, climate change critics sow doubt, Democracy Now, January 1, 2015. Syndicated in the Albuquerque Journal, the Lincoln Journal-Star, the Union of Nevada County, CA, The Spokesman Review, and TruthDig.
- John Upton, Ahead of IPCC report, fossil-fuel groups organize climate denial campaign, Grist, September 20, 2013
- Graham Readfern, Report offers field guide to the climate change denial industry, The Guardian, September 12, 2013
- Andy Rowell, Exposing the Climate Change Denial Machine, Oil Change International September 11, 2013
- Ben Jervey, Dealing in Doubt: Greenpeace Report Exposes Fossil Fuel Funded Climate Denial Machine, DeSmog, September 10, 2013
- Laura Beans, New Report Details History of Attacks on Climate Science, EcoWatch, September 10, 2013
- Jim Hoggan, A 20-Year History of Climate Denial Industry, HuffPost, May 26, 2010
- Dealing in Doubt: New Greenpeace report reviews 20 years of the climate change denial machine, Government Accountability Project, March 27, 2010
- Stacy Feldman, Greenpeace Says Climate Denialism a 20–Year Industry, InsideClimate News, March 24, 2010
Greenpeace blogs citing Dealing in Doubt:
- Connor Gibson, OHIO: Koch, ALEC and Dirty Energy Co’s Attack Clean Energy Jobs, Greenpeace USA, October 30, 2013
- Connor Gibson, Climate Denial Congress! Taking the Tin Foil Hats to yesterday’s Climate Hearing, September 19, 2013
- Kert Davies, Exxon continued to fund climate denial in 2009, Greenpeace USA, July 19, 2010
