#climate science is real

During CNN’s two-night Democratic presidential primary debate in Detroit on July 30 and 31, only 9.5% of the questions were about climate change. Yet the climate crisis is one of the most pressing issues facing the nation and the world, and it is imperative that the public knows what candidates propose to do to move us towards a clean economy and a livable climate. 

Climate activists are redoubling their calls for one of the remaining 10 planned debates to be dedicated entirely to the climate crisis.

Reporting on the recent heat wave that affected more than 150 million Americans, meteorologist and CBS weather contributor Jeff Berardelli noted the link between climate change and extreme heat waves on the July 18 episode of CBS This Morning. That’s an all-too-rare occurrence on broadcast TV news programs: out of 127 segments they aired last year during a heat wave, only one, on CBS This Morning, mentioned climate change. 

It is extremely important that networks connect climate change to extreme heat and extreme weather in general. The science linking climate change and extreme heat is very strong, and climate change has increased the frequency, size, and duration of extreme heat events.

Dr. Genevieve Guenther’s got it exactly right: climate change is real and it’s affecting communities around the world. Even one year later, news outlets are not giving climate change the attention it deserves. Media need to stop neglecting to inform the public about how the climate crisis is connected to extreme weather and so much else.

Read her full thread with more examples of climate silence.

Climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing the world, and polling shows that American voters rank climate change as a top concern this election cycle.

It’s crucial that during the presidential debates, voters hear the candidates’ positions and policy proposals on climate change. Ahead of the first Democratic primary debates next week, here are some ways that the debate moderators can center climate change in their questions.

Climate activists are calling on the Democratic National Committee to make climate change the sole focus of at least one of its 12 planned presidential primary debates, and activists will be presenting petition signatures to the DNC headquarters this Wednesday.

Having a dedicated climate debate is crucial, but a Media Matters study found that only 1.5% of debate questions in the 2016 presidential primaries were about climate change. As the climate crisis worsens, it is imperative that the public knows what candidates propose to do to move us toward a clean economy and a stable, livable climate.