The Fair and Balanced Truth According to Fox News

“Global warming?” sputtered *Rufus T. Hamhooker of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. “Climate Change?  Absolutely ludicrous! Those damned scientists are just trying to blame it on people and human activities. It's a Communist plot by liberals  to get more money.”

Hamhooker referred to articles in Fox News which question Climate Change,  due to human activity.  The Fox article quotes two scientists who they say, cast doubts on the question. But, one of them, John Christy, professor of atmospheric science at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.  Professor Christy holds a Master of Divinity degree (1978) from Golden Gate Baptist Seminary, and is Alabama’s state climatologist.  As a former lead author for IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), what he actually said was:

 "It is scientifically inconceivable that after changing forests into cities, turning millions of acres into irrigated farmland, putting massive quantities of soot and dust into the air, and putting extra greenhouse gases into the air, that the natural course of climate has not changed in some way."

The second ‘expert’ Fox quotes is Ross McKitrick is a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute, a Canadian ‘Free Market’ think tank, and a 'completely uninterested entity'. McKitrick is also part of The Interfaith Stewardship Alliance is a coalition of religious leaders, clergy, theologians, scientists, academics, and other policy experts committed to bringing a proper and balanced Biblical view of stewardship to the critical issues of environment and development. He is co-author of  “A Call to Truth, Prudence, and Protection of the Poor, An Evangelical Response to Global Warming”

The sub-headline for the Fox article reads: “The embattled ex-head of the research center at the heart of the Climate-gate scandal dropped a bombshell over the weekend, admitting in an interview with the BBC that there has been no global warming over the past 15 years.”

However, the BBC article which Fox cites for it’s source quotes Phil Jones, who is the ‘embattled ex-head of the research center at the heart of the Climate-gate scandal’ as actually saying pretty near the complete opposite: “I'm 100% confident that the climate has warmed. As to the second question, I would go along with IPCC."

Hamhooker went on, convinced by the Fox News story, “Obama says he wants to leave God out of it and leave it up to science. But God is the first and most important and only true scientist.  Why is Obama against God and the only true science?  I’ll put my faith in Sarah Palin any day.  Sarah thinks it’s just normal weather patterns, and Sarah Palin prays to God every day about everything so she’s in a position to know.”

** “This planet is God’s. He created it and sustains it according to His perfect will.  For man to think he can alter what God controls, is beyond arrogant. Try blasphemous. The resources on/in this planet were expressly given to man for his use. I'm aghast that this obvious attempt to use atmospherics for the purpose of controlling the freedom of individuals has gone on so long. Shameful.”

“I trust Fox News.” Hamhooker continued. “They’re fair and balanced and present the truth. If they don’t think it’s truthful of necessary to print things that disagree with the article, then neither do I. I’m like most other conservatives. I’ll believe exactly what I want to believe, and what I’m told to believe by the ones I trust.”

* Rufus Hamhooker is a fictional character for the purpose of this story
** Verbatim quotes from comments to Fox News article