Hume claimed Gore's "energy use has surged more than 10 percent," ignored Gore's response that it's all "green power"

Summary: On Special Report, citing purported findings by the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, Brit Hume claimed that Al Gore's "energy use has surged more than 10 percent" since environmentally friendly renovations were completed on his home. Hume offered no response from Gore. Responding to the charge, a Gore spokeswoman stated that "[w]hen [the Gores] do use power, it's green power." According to the Tennessee Valley Authority, green power "create[s] less waste and pollution" than standard electricity.

On the June 18 edition of Fox News' Special Report, citing the purported findings of the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, host and Fox News Washington managing editor Brit Hume claimed that former Vice President Al Gore's "energy use has surged more than 10 percent" since environmentally friendly renovations were completed on his home in 2007. An on-screen graphic showed a photo of Gore with the caption, "Climate Charlatan." However, Hume offered no response from Gore. In a June 18 article, The Tennessean reported that Gore spokeswoman Kalee Kreider responded to the TCPR press release by stating, "When [the Gores] do use power, it's green power." In 2007, Gore's office reportedly said that 100 percent of the electricity in his home comes from green power, and Kreider was similarly quoted in The Washington Post as saying that "[t]he power coming into their residence is green, renewable power."

As the Tennessean further noted, "[T]he Gores participate in the Nashville Electric Service's Green Power Switch program, which allows them to buy their electricity from renewable sources like wind power, solar power or methane gas." According to the Tennessee Valley Authority, which partners with the Nashville Electric Service and other local energy distributors to provide green power, "[a]lthough no source of energy is impact-free, renewable resources create less waste and pollution."

In 2007, after the TCPR issued a similar report criticizing Gore's energy use, Media Matters for America documented several media outlets that similarly omitted steps Gore was taking to reduce his carbon footprint.

From the June 18 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Brit Hume:

HUME: And now, the most enthralling two minutes in television, the latest from the "Political Grapevine."

After former Vice President Al Gore's massive home energy use was exposed in February of 2007, the Nobel Prize winner began using solar panels, a geothermal system, energy-efficient light bulbs, and even updated his windows and ductwork.

But the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, which revealed Gore's energy bills last year, reports that since he made those green-friendly changes to his Tennessee mansion, his energy use has surged more than 10 percent.

The center says that in past year, Gore's home has burned through more than 213,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, which is said to be enough to power 232 average American households for a full month.

—R.C.