Mail Climate Change Disconnect

Some out there still believe that newspapers really do seek to educate and inform their readers. That they do not is not always an easy sell. At times like this, though, the opposition often comes riding to your rescue, and this morning, the inmates of the Northcliffe House bunker have come galloping.

The subject, not for the first time this summer, is man-made climate change, and its manifestations. The BBC is reporting currently on “At least 20 dead after torrential South Korea rain”, alongside “A third of Americans under extreme heat advisories”, and closer to home, “Heatwave prompts red alerts in 16 Italian cities”. That report tells “Periods of intense heat occur within natural weather patterns, but globally they are becoming more frequent, more intense and are lasting longer due to global warming”.

And while there are still some pretending that it’s not happening, or that there is no link to the burning of fossil fuels, others are taking matters into their own hands, with groups like Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil protesting, taking direct action in order to shake the public out of their complacency.

This the Mail will not take seriously. Hence headlines such as “'Get out of the road!': White van man tells Just Stop Oil protesters exactly what he thinks of them as traffic speeds past their latest London slow-march protest” and “Just Stop Oil eco zealot with a TAG on her ankle is seen being led away by police - as angry motorists resort to driving around activists and over pavements during yet another slow march”. The demonisation is off the scale.

Hence calling the protesters “eco zealots”, “eco clowns”, “pathetic and tedious”, and of course giving a good kicking to anyone who expresses sympathy with them. We have also had the sad sight of Labour’s Rachel Reeves dissing JSO in order to curry favour with the likes of the Mail.

But then came the heatwaves, and today all is changed, as the Mail’s front page howls “MELTDOWN … Holiday crisis as strike threatens to cripple Gatwick … Second walkout could hit one in three flights across Europe … and if you do get there, it’ll be a sweltering 45C!” There was more.

The supporting article told “A third blow to the holiday industry comes from record heatwaves on the Continent. Temperatures are tipped to exceed 45C (113F) ‘ making it too hot to go to the beach at popular resorts … Millions of families are now questioning whether an increasingly costly foreign break is worthwhile, with research showing that only 25 per cent of those considering one have actually booked”. Yes, it’s now affecting Mail readers.

So it has to be taken seriously. The paper is even conceding “Household budgets are also being stretched by sky-high inflation and soaring mortgage repayment costs”, although this is subject to the same disconnect as the heatwaves: the ineptitude of the Mail’s preferred Government cannot be cited as contributing to the inflation, and food and mortgage costs.

Headlines such as “Cerberus's inferno: Europe is set to hit its hottest temperature EVER within days as 48C double heatwaves that are named after mythological guardians of Hell leave continent boiling in sweat … British tourists across the Mediterranean are being warned of deadly temperatures reaching highs of 48.8C … Now, Italian meteorologists are warning the continent may be hit by another brutal heatwave next week” are generated.

It was bad then. It's worse now

Only grudgingly does the Mail admit the causes: “What's causing Europe's heatwave? Scientists reveal how scorching temperatures across the continent are being driven by a high-pressure anticyclone and El Niño - as well as climate change”. Climate change tacked on as an afterthought.

And never linked to Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil, who are both there to be sneered at and viciously demonised. What do the Dacre doggies think drives climate change? Any chance of them suggesting to their readers that the protesters are not mere “zealots” or “clowns”, that they are sincere and have a valid point to make? Any chance of dealing in reality?

Any chance of the Mail behaving responsibly? Nah, that’ll never happen.

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