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Business-Managed Democracy

‘Business-managed democracies are those in which the political and cultural
arrangements are managed in the interests of business.’
Sharon Beder, 2009.


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pointer Business-Managed Democracy » Environment » Global Warming » Casting Doubt » Public Opinion
Global Warming - Public Opinion

Public opinion does not reflect the growing scientific consensus on global warming because of successful corporate efforts to caste doubt on the science.

Australia

Perhaps nowhere has the fossil fuel industry been more successful at casting doubt on global warming than in Australia, where the government presented the fossil fuel industry’s interests as being synonymous with the national interest. In 1988, when the National Greenhouse 88 Conference was held in Australia, there was unprecedented public interest in the issue. This has been systematically eroded through a well-orchestrated international campaign to portray global warming as little more than a theory that scientists can’t agree on. This strategy is aimed at crippling the impetus for government action to solve these problems—action which might adversely affect corporate profits.

A small Morgan poll found the following:

public opinion graph

Source: 'Public Opinion, Global Warming and the CPRS', Pollytics.com, 19 January 2010.

Older (50+) male conservative voters were most likely to believe global warming concerns were exaggerated.

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Changing Opinions on Global Warming in the US

reference
Reference: Alec Gallup and Lydia Saad, ‘Public Concerned, Not Alarmed About global Warming’, The Gallup Poll, 1997.

The success of this manufactured confusion strategy was evident in US Gallop polls in October and November 1997. They found that 37 percent of those surveyed thought that scientists were unsure of the cause of global warming. The poll also showed a drop in concern about global warming since 1991.

Despite the shifting stance of corporations and think tanks about the veracity of human-induced global warming, the public is still being influenced by the confusion industry.

Changing Opinions in the US
April 2008
October 2009
Is there solid evidence the earth is warming?
%
%
 Yes
71
57
     Because of human activity
47
36
     Because of natural patterns
18
16
     Don't know
6
6
 No
21
33
 Mixed/Don't Know
8
10
How serious a problem?
%
%
 Very serious
44
35
 Somewhat serious
29
30
 Not too serious
13
15
 Not a problem
11
17

Source: 'Fewer Americans See Solid Evidence of Global Warming',
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, 22 October 2009.

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Changing Opinions on Global Warming in the UK

climate change poll graph
Source: 'Climate scepticism 'on the rise', BBC poll shows', BBC News, 5 February 2010.

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See also: Casting Doubt | Sceptics vs Deniers

References

 

© 2010 Sharon Beder
http://www.herinst.org/BusinessManagedDemocracy/environment/warming/opinion.html
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