CNN falsely reported climate change skeptic Gray "predicted last year's hurricane season better than the National Hurricane Center"
SUMMARY: On CNN Live Today, CNN reporter Mary Snow falsely claimed that "renowned forecaster" William Gray "accurately predicted last year's hurricane season better than the National Hurricane Center." Gray is a scientist from Colorado State University who has spoken against the notion that human beings are responsible for global warming.
On the June 7 edition of CNN Live Today, CNN correspondent Mary Snow falsely claimed that "renowned forecaster" William M. Gray -- professor emeritus of atmospheric science at Colorado State University who has spoken against the notion that human beings are responsible for global warming -- "accurately predicted last year's hurricane season better than the National Hurricane Center." In fact, Gray's predictions for the 2005 hurricane season were virtually the same as those of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), which runs the National Hurricane Center.
In 2005, Gray and his team at the Tropical Meteorology Project predicted 15 "named" storms, eight hurricanes, and four "intense" hurricanes. The NOAA predicted virtually identical numbers -- between 12 and 15 tropical storms, 7-9 hurricanes, and 3-5 major hurricanes. Both were wrong. As CNN host Anderson Cooper said during a June 1 segment of Anderson Cooper 360, Gray's hurricane predictions were "way off last year":
COOPER: Gray's record, over about 20 years, is one of the most reliable. But he was way off last year. In 2005, [Gray] said there would be 15 named storms, but there were 27. He also expected eight hurricanes, four of which would be intense. But there were 14 hurricanes last year, and seven were major, including Katrina, which left more than 1,800 people dead.
While Snow noted that Gray's view on global warming is "at odds not only with former vice president Al Gore, but with over 2,000 of the world's leading climate scientists," she also repeated Gray's suggestion that the reason more scientists have not joined him in denouncing the threat of global warming is because they "are afraid to voice skepticism." A May 28 Washington Post Magazine article by Joel Achenbach offered a different perspective, reporting that Gray's methodology regarding climate change "is increasingly on the fringe" and noting that "[t]he skeptics don't agree with one another." Pat Michaels, for instance, distanced himself from Gray, saying, that unlike Gray, he "believe[s] in climate change caused by human beings." When Achenbach "ask[ed] Gray who his intellectual soul mates are regarding global warming," Gray responded, "I have nobody really to talk to about this stuff.'"
From the June 7 edition of CNN Live Today:
SNOW: In one corner, former vice president Al Gore making the movie, An Inconvenient Truth, to focus attention on a global crisis.
GORE: The Arctic is experiencing faster melting. If this were to go, sea level worldwide would go up 20 feet.
SNOW: In the other corner, renowned forecaster Dr. William Gray, who accurately predicted last year's hurricane season better than the National Hurricane Center -- two men with a focus on the environment with a divide over the science of global warming, with Gray skeptical that humans are having a major impact on the warming of the planet.
GRAY: I think this threat of human-induced global warming is largely manufactured. I don't think it is real.
SNOW: That puts Dr. Gray at odds not only with former vice president Al Gore, but with over 2,000 of the world's leading climate scientists. They say, yes, because humans are burning things like oil and coal, it's contributing to global warming. So why aren't there more skeptics? Dr. Gray claims that scientists, especially younger ones, are afraid to voice skepticism.
his forecasts during the season, because his original forecasts have been well off at times. as for scientists being "afraid" to voice skepticism on global warming, what is he thinking? are they going to be tortured?
...why any legitimate scientist would be "afraid" to report his findings. That's a completely ridiculous defense.
If they work for the oil or tobacco industry, you bet they would be afraid to report findings.
Don't forget the true story of Dr. Jeffrey Wigand, chronicled in an excellent film, The Insider.
...I made sure to use the word "legitimate." Real scientists aren't "afraid" to report the truth. On the contrary, it's their sole mission.
A scientist would love to prove something that so many 0ther scientists didn't believe. The key word is prove. Which he obviously doesn't have because all the proof is on global warming being real and being fueled by humans. No pun intended.
This guy has no one to talk to because he is full of it.
If she didn't have blonde hair would Mary Snow be on TV>But,to be fair,she is far from the worst thing on CNN.Kurtz and Daryn(Rush's ex) are still there,at least Daryn looks nice.
...that you always seem to see the small handful of climate and/or geophysical scientists who are global warming "skeptics" (denialists is a better description, IMO)?
Seriously, I know that there is a bit of a slant in the media to produce titilating coverage of events (understatement of the century, I know), but all I'm seeing in the coverage of AGW are guys like Gray, Lidzden and Carter. These guys are the Michael Behe's and Stephen Meyer's of the climatology world.
Carlodepietro is quite correct. Realclimate.com ([link to www.realclimate.com)] posted (Feb. 16) a very good essay comparing the global warming-global warming denial debate to the evolution-creation debate (such as it is) - the parallels are quite striking: [link to www.realclimate.org] As with the creationists/ID proponents, the global warming skeptics get far more air time than they deserve because their view fits the republican/conservative agenda. If the reality of global warming was likely to benefit industry, you can bet mainstream climatologists would be the media darlings of conservative TV and radio. As mefirst and clams casino noted above, legitimate scientists are out to prove the truth, where ever they find it. The surest way to scientific fame is to overturn prevailing ideas on a topic.
Any competent meteorologist can look at the data, the ocean temperature readings and such, and come up with a reasonably accurate hurricane prediction. The person's views on global warming don't mean much there, because there's very little disagreement about whether or not it's happening: the disagreement is about how much of it can be attributed to human activity and how much of that can be controlled -- and at what cost. And, of course, we need to recognize that NOAA is also subject to the same political pressures that have become so prevalent in the last six or so years...
I recently watched the excellent Frontline documentary on AIDS, and it was clear from this that the denialists, notably Peter Drucker with his crackpot ideas that HIV does not cause AIDS has cost hundreds of thousands of lives in Africa. Although this tendency to deny the worst is understandably human, it is critical to jettison this nonsense in a crisis.
They start with the falsehood that "he predicted the hurricane season better than the National Hurricane Center" thus creating the false dichotomy That he is clearly the better and correct scientist
CNN needs to issue an apology/retraction for this kind of shoddy reporting. Where is the retraction CNN????
William M. Gray -- professor emeritus of atmospheric science at Colorado State University goes to Pat Robertson's church ?
Not all sides deserve equal merit. In the debate on whether the Earth is round, some say it is round, but on the other side of the debate, some say it is flat. So lets give equal time to both sides and continue to debate the issue....NOT!
Dr. Gray better hope that Ann "SPOKESPERSON FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY" doesn't hear him say anything bad because he will only be doing it because he is old and you "CAANOT" attack old people...he brought up the young scientists
Have any of you really checked the history?
I'm sure most of you know of the Global Wariming back at the end of the ice age millions of years ago?
Are you aware of the Global Warming during the age of the Vikings? Was this all due to their engines in their ships? Their lawn mowers? Their SUVs?
What about all of our scientists that predicted our "Ice Age" in 1975? Run Run Run!!!! Posted articles by Newsweek, National Academy of Science, etc....Where did it go?
Pollution the problem? Russia is the dirtiest country on this planet. They just had thier coldest winter in the last quarter of a century. The sun is putting out more heat itself than ever before. That is actual heat from the sun, not coming through the earth.
Glaciers: Ålfotbreen, Briksdalsbreen, Nigardsbreen, Hardangerjøkulen, Hansebreen, Jostefonn, Engabreen, Helm, Place, Antizana 15 Alpha, Silvretta Glacier, Abramov, Maali Glacier(surging),Moreno Glacier, Mt. Shuckson,Mount St. Helens, Mt. McKinley and Hubbard, ..............are all growing. Yes, I said growing! There are plenty more btw.
Why arne't we hearing of all this? Why why why? Some of these are growing up to 7 miles a year. All 48 of New Zealand's glaciers are growing. Again. Why?
48 is "all" of new zealand's glaciers?
is the only glacier in the 48 contiguous states that is "growing". but that is a meaningless statistic since the 1980 eruption destroyed the 13 glaciers then present.
The "growing" of glaciers at the center while melting on the outside edges is an effect predicted by the computer models of global warming.
So, the next time you try to come up with an "AHA!" moment, make sure you know what you are talking about first.
Because you don't.