Since early March, Fox host Sean Hannity has been falsely claiming that electric vehicles (EVs) are worse for the environment than gas-powered cars, citing a study — which had been grossly misinterpreted by The New York Post — at least 11 times on his prime-time program and radio show. `

On March 5, The New York Post published an article that erroneously claimed a study from Emissions Analytics, a tailpipe emissions testing company, demonstrated that “brakes and tires on EVs release 1,850 times more particle pollution compared to modern tailpipes.” The Post wrote the article after a column in The Wall Street Journal accurately noted that the study stated “airborne tire-wear emissions” are greater than “direct exhaust particulate emissions” in gasoline cars with particle filters.

The Post’s characterization of the study’s findings is inaccurate. The analysis used recent models of filter-equipped gas-powered cars to compare tire wear and tailpipe particulate mass emissions under different driving conditions, which are both separate from the greenhouse gas emissions that gas-powered vehicles produce. Crucially, EVs were not tested in the study. Instead, Emission Analytics found that in “comparing real-world tailpipe particulate mass emissions to tire wear emissions, both in ‘normal’ driving, the latter is actually around 1,850 times greater than the former.” 

Because their batteries weigh so much more than gas-powered engines, EVs are heavier than gas-powered vehicles, which means they can emit more particulate matter pollution as the car wears through tires more rapidly. But in the same study quoted by the Post, Emission Analytics acknowledged how regenerative braking — a mechanism that EVs use to convert the energy from braking into battery charge — can help to offset the additional pollution. 

“A gentle BEV [electric vehicle] driver, with the benefit of regenerative braking, can more than cancel out the tire wear emissions from the additional weight of their vehicle, to achieve lower tire wear than an internal combustion engine vehicle driven badly,” the study stated. 

Emissions Analytics even posted a fact check of the claim that electric vehicles “pollute 1,850 times more than fuel-based vehicles” on its official X (formerly known as Twitter) page.

Very welcome fact check on our tyre emissions study.



Yes, tyre emissions in the test were this much higher than from the tailpipe, but the BEV would still reduce CO2 the most. Tyre emissions are a downside of electrification we need to handle. https://t.co/R2AiDGxU3n

— Emissions Analytics (@E_Analytics) March 19, 2024

As record-breaking levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere drive more extreme weather events and other climate impacts, research has shown that EV technology can help us stave off the worst impacts of climate change. Currently, the transportation sector makes up the largest portion of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. Most of those emissions come from gas-powered and diesel vehicles. 

Hannity’s attempt to undermine EV’s importance to the clean economy transition comes as no surprise given his apparent disdain for climate change mitigation efforts and Fox’s legacy of facilitating the climate misinformation pipeline and fossil fuel defense racket. 

• Sean Hannity cited the study to declare that electric cars are “worse for the environment.” He claimed: “Brakes and tires release 1,850 times more particulate matter compared to modern tailpipes.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 3/5/24]
• Hannity spoke with Fox News contributor Jimmy Failla about his “favorite story of the week” and how the study proved “they were wrong the whole time.” [Fox News, Hannity, 3/8/24]
• Hannity complained about “the Biden administration moving forward with their gas-powered vehicle ban.” He continued, “Did they not see the report a week and a half ago about electric vehicles being bigger polluters?” Multiple sources have dispelled the false narrative that the new clean car standard is a ban on gas-powered cars. [Fox News, Hannity, 3/20/24; Media Matters, 3/25/24]
• Hannity: “And now we're learning that the heaviness of the car produces particles from the rubber wheels that then also is polluting the planet, maybe even more than gas-powered vehicles.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 3/21/24]
• Hannity cited the study while criticizing “eight states planning a complete ban on the sale of gas-powered cars entirely.” Hannity failed to provide context that the same study noted how EV’s regenerative braking could offset the additional tire emissions. Hannity also suggested that the environmental degradation that results from mining for minerals found in EV batteries and the fossil-fuel based electric grid that charges those batteries negate the environmental benefits of electric vehicles, which is false. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 3/27/24; NPR, 5/9/24; Forbes, 3/3/20]
• Hannity spoke with Fox Business host Larry Kudlow about “a recent study report that shows that EVs might be polluting the planet more than gas-powered vehicles because they're so heavy and the particles from the tires are far more damaging to the environment than a gas-run vehicle.” He added, “I’m not a scientist.” [Fox News, Hannity, 4/3/24]
• In an interview with climate denier Marc Morano, Hannity mentioned the study that said “electric cars may pollute the planet more than gas-powered cars.” He also stated that “the climate alarmist religious cult” is “based on phony science, not real science.” [Fox News, Hannity, 4/4/24]
• Hannity again referred to a study that allegedly shows “electric vehicles pollute as much, if not more, than gas-powered vehicles.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 4/4/24]
• Hannity complained about Democrats being “convinced that every American needs to have an electric vehicle,” citing the study and debunked claims to falsely suggest that EVs are worse for the environment than gas-powered cars. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 4/5/24]
• Most recently, Hannity referenced the report, explaining that an electric vehicle “may be a bigger polluter than a gas-powered vehicle.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 6/5/24]
• Again, Hannity criticized electric vehicles, mentioning that “there was a study out that shows they actually pollute the environment more.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 6/5/24]