Climate Skeptics Can't Get On TV, Says Climate Skeptic On TV

In a 700 Club segment rehashing climate science pseudo-scandals, Cato Institute climatologist Patrick Michaels had a peculiar observation for someone appearing on television: scientists like him, who doubt climate change will have serious consequences, have a hard time getting on TV.

MICHAELS: I'm not convinced that there are that many scientists who view this as this apocalyptic, end of the world issue -- but that gets a lot of coverage. If I tell you the world's going to come to an end, I'll get on TV. If I tell you that it's not, I probably won't.

Leaving aside the amusing fact that Michaels made this comment during an appearance on TV, to suggest that climate skeptics like himself are blacklisted in favor of doom-and-gloom scientists is farcical. Michaels - along with other prominent climate skeptics like CEI's Chris Horner - have been fixtures in the media conversation about climate change for years.

Michaels himself has appeared on or been quoted by major media outlets (search included NYT, LA Times, WSJ, WaPo, USA Today, AP, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, CBS, ABC, and NPR) on issues pertaining to climate change at least 49 times since 2007.

In fact, from December 2009 through April 2011, Michaels was the only climate scientist featured in television coverage of EPA's climate regulations, which he opposes.

Michaels isn't kept out of the media conversation on climate change because he's a climate skeptic - he's featured because of it, which is all the more troubling given that around "40 percent" of his funding comes from petroleum interests.