Approximately three decades ago, scientists studying the earth’s atmosphere began to raise concerns about global warming. To counteract the public outcry, certain research institutions promoted the message that “everything was okay.”
Soon, a campaign of disinformation by oil and gas lobbyists to sow doubt about their findings.
One journalist, Ross Gelbspan, dug deep into the research. He looked at who funded the research and found the oil & gas industry was covertly funding climate change denialism. His series of articles alerted the public that there was a campaign to deny climate change.
The articles, collected, formed the book The Heat is On: The Climate Crisis, The Cover-Up, The Prescription. Published in 1997, it won the Pulitzer Prize.
He made it his mission to alert everyone to the dangers of climate change. In 2004, he published Boiling Point: How Politicians, Big Oil and Coal, Journalists, and Activists Have Fueled a Climate Crisis — And What We Can Do to Avert Disaster.
The New York Times posted the obituary of Ross Gelbspan on February 16, 2024. Mr. Gelbspan died January 27, 2024. To learn more about his crusading life, take a read. Author Trip Gabriel summarizes Gelbspan’s life and influence. ♠️
Click here to go to the New York Times page with the obituary of Ross Gelbspan.
The photo is from Institute for Policy Studies. Permission pending.