The Utah capitol: Hearing ‘both sides’ of climate science.

Eighteen Brigham Young University earth scientists are telling the state’s political leaders that they need to “give considerable weight to an overwhelming scientific consensus, and treat fringe positions with respectful skepticism.”

The BYU faculty members said they think that giving “too much weight” to a vocal but small minority of scientific viewpoints “puts all of us at risk by promoting poorly informed decisions.” Their prescription for better policy for Utah? “Base decisions regarding the effects of climate change in Utah upon the best scientific evidence available.”

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So, here’s the deal, and surely we digress:

We’re not going to spill a lot of ink here (spread a lot of bytes?) reporting on the snafu in which a D.C. Beltway public relations/advocacy firm forged letters to a Virginia congressman urging opposition to the recent House-passed Waxman-Markey bill.

It’s simply beneath us to grovel in this gruel (although it’s so danged unreal, and fun, that we retain the option to return to the subject later, perhaps even in a slow-news August moment).

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One of the old-line, most vocal, and most influential voices on federal environmental matters may soon undergo changes generally associated with adolescents - a change in its voice. Or at least the impact its voice carries with Washington policymakers.

Whether that happens, and to what effect, may be an important back-story in coming months and years as domestic automakers, two of them only recently out of bankruptcy proceedings, define their new future in a changing Washington political environment … and in some cases have it redefined for them.

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With President Obama and key congressional leaders seeking passage this year of global warming legislation, journalists have a great opportunity to explain the complexities of the issue to their readers.

But reporters must be careful too, as climate policy doesn’t fit neatly into a simple storyline of he said/she said. My editor likes to say that the climate debate is just as contentious as the issues facing the Middle East. Indeed, this is a debate filled with nuance, with more than two sides vying for coverage.

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A progressive spirit burning for several years in American evangelical circles is prompting many in that religious community to take up activism on climate change.

A sign of the trend was recently on public display in Pastor Rick Warren’s invocation during President Obama’s inauguration.

“When we fail to treat our fellow human beings and all the Earth with the respect that they deserve, forgive us,” Warren asked in prayer.

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View larger image BBC ‘Newsnight’ website link to video

One of the proudest and most credible names in journalism, BBC, has found itself challenged on its questionable editing and splicing of President Obama’s science and climate change remarks during his inauguration on January 20.

The issue involves whether BBC’s self-described “montage” distorted the meaning of Obama’s references to elevating science and combating climate change by appearing to have him say something he never said.

At least not in so many words.

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The New Year has begun with a blast of arctic air freezing much of the country. The winter weather - and of course it’s weather and not climate - isn’t exactly the kind of motivation people need to think about the globe’s warming.

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Surprise - that President-Elect Barack Obama is confronting climate change in the midst of deepening global economic woes - and, again, surprise - that he took on climate change directly and firmly weeks before he officially takes office January 20.

Those were the hallmarks of several key news organizations’ reporting on the Obama taped video message November 17 to a climate change meeting of governors in California.

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After Hurricane Katrina, An Inconvenient Truth, the 2007 reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and other events pushed the climate change issue higher on the public agenda, it may have seemed that it wouldn’t soon slide back down.

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Newspaper endorsements in a presidential election reveal more than where the nation has been or where it is now. They point the way toward a national agenda for the future.

By that measure, most American newspapers saw little room on the next president’s “To Do List” for action on the climate issue. Perhaps it’s not surprising, given the recession and world financial crisis, grinding wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a broken health care system, and continuing worries about public education and U.S. competitiveness.

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