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The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

bbc.co.uk

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Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#11

Post by Barrin92 »

headsoup wrote: post #6
hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

Do you at least appreciate the irony of the BBC here saying we shouldn't give contrary opinions a stage as a way of ensuring integrity?

The BBC as a public broadcaster isn't in the business of hosting contrarians for profit but to broadcast factful news, so.. not really.

The opinion of scientists qualified to speak on the question of CC matters, letting literal oil lobbyists speak is like asking the fox if we should keep the door to the henhouse open.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#12

Post by Comevius »

hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

It's crimes against humanity, it's what it is. Sabotaging the human race for personal gain is the ultimate crime, it makes Hitler look like a saint. Any sentient species in the Universe wishing to prevail must, absolutely must be able to effectively discourage such behavior.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#13

Post by simiones »

headsoup wrote: post #6
hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

Do you at least appreciate the irony of the BBC here saying we shouldn't give contrary opinions a stage as a way of ensuring integrity?

Integrity in news reporting has nothing to do with presenting every possible view as legitimate.

A news report about the Earth that invites both physicists and flat earth loonies is not in any way better than one that doesn't even mention the flat Earth "theory".

You are actively misleading the public when inviting climate change deniers to a discussion about climate change.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#14

Post by truculent »

flooow wrote: post #5

> "My role was to identify the voices that were not in the mainstream and to give those voices a stage," Rheem says. [...] > He says the media was hungry for these perspectives. > "Journalists were actually actively looking for the contrarians. It was really feeding an appetite that was already there." A rare example of the BBC breaking the media omertà on itself here. You thought journalism was supposed to help you…

In the UK, you need a substantial amount of meta-knowledge about the media outlets and political landscape in order to use news reporting to become more, not less or dis-, informed.

It’s a shame that the idea of learning media studies and related subjects at school or university were so maligned in the 00s, but probably not a coincidence either.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#15

Post by chess_buster »

headsoup wrote: post #6
hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

Do you at least appreciate the irony of the BBC here saying we shouldn't give contrary opinions a stage as a way of ensuring integrity?

The opinion of 10,000 men is of no value if none of them know anything about the subject. --Marcus Aurelius

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#17

Post by tiborsaas »

kaushikc wrote: post #8
hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

Proper terminology needs to be crafted for corporate tactics and their incessant attempts towards undermining public good.

No word-crafting is needed, it's called a conspiracy.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#19

Post by silverpepsi »

Comevius wrote: post #12
hunglee2 wrote: post #2

it is high time we called 'PR' what it is - corporate propaganda - in order to strip the discipline of the legitimacy it somehow retains. It's basically paid for BS, and when it comes to climate change, everyone is going to be paying the price

It's crimes against humanity, it's what it is. Sabotaging the human race for personal gain is the ultimate crime, it makes Hitler look like a saint. Any sentient species in the Universe wishing to prevail must, absolutely must be able to effectively discourage such behavior.

...Sentence two, and y'all folks keep wondering who is fueling the lack of trust & emergence of conspiracy theories.

When you're fueling the emotional aspect with your words that unabashedly, you are making people who are on the fence or unsure certain something is really wrong with the mainstream claims. I can tell you this just from the reaction you gave me in the pit of my stomach.

Re: The audacious PR plot that seeded doubt about climate change

#20

Post by silverpepsi »

simiones wrote: post #13
headsoup wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you at least appreciate the irony of the BBC here saying we shouldn't give contrary opinions a stage as a way of ensuring integrity?

Integrity in news reporting has nothing to do with presenting every possible view as legitimate. A news report about the Earth that invites both physicists and flat earth loonies is not in any way better than one that doesn't even mention the flat Earth "theory". You are actively misleading the public when inviting climate change deniers to a discussion about climate change.

Here's a challenge I bet your little principle can't sustain: find a major long standing theory in human history that turned out to be wrong. Then apply your idea . The desired outcome for a rational principle would be that the truth and reality bubbles efficiently to the surface instead of gets burried and is taboo and something people are ostracized for promoting. I have yet to hear a principle that can deliver this outcome.
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