10.11.2019

Wall Street Journal Corrects Mischaracterization of CO2 Coalition

Wall Street Journal published an article titled “Facebook to Exempt Opinion and Satire From Fact-Checking,” which mischaracterized the CO2 Coalition’s position on global warming.  Dr. Caleb S. Rossiter, the Coalition’s Executive Director, wrote a letter to the Journal stating:

“The article claims that the CO2 Coalition ‘which receives funding from the oil-and-gas industry, dismisses global warming as a hoax….’  To the contrary, all of our scientific publications and congressional testimony consistently state that  carbon dioxide is a warming gas that has contributed to the one degree rise in global mean temperature in the past 140 years.  The UN body that reports on climate change is confident that a quarter of the degree global rise comes from carbon dioxide emissions, rather than natural causes.  We agree that is a reasonable estimate.  The UN body also estimates that temperature ‘sensitivity’ to a doubling of carbon dioxide levels ranges from 1.5 to 4.5 degrees — a three-fold difference.  Research by Coalition atmospheric physicists argues that the lower estimate is closer to reality, but never claims that the proper estimate is zero! “As for funding by the oil-and-gas industry, this is an ad hominem attack, and isn’t even accurate.  I would be happy to accept funding from anyone, but the CO2 Coalition has not received any such funding, with the exception of a $5,000 grant from Marathon Oil in 2015.  That accounts for two-tenths of one percent of our income since then.  As a candidate for Congress and as head of a non-governmental arms control group I accepted over a million dollars from people who supported the positions I held.  That never stopped me from changing my positions when the data and analysis required it.  The CO2 Coalition’s 50 climate scientists and energy economists have a long record of valuing principle over paycheck.”
In response to Dr. Rossiter’s letter, the Wall Street Journal published a correction, as follows:
The CO2 Coalition, which receives funding from individuals and organizations with ties to the oil-and-gas industry, says it acknowledges global warming but is skeptical that it is tied to catastrophic climate effects. An Oct. 1 Business & Finance article about Facebook Inc. ’s fact-checking program incorrectly said that the group dismisses global warming as a hoax. It also said the group receives funding from the oil-and-gas industry.
Dr. Rossiter said: “The Coalition greatly respects the news staff of Wall Street Journal and appreciates this correction being made.”]]>

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