Heartland Institute hit by its own leak-'gate' Jean Chemnick, E&E reporter One of the leading promoters of the "Climategate" episode has had a leak problem of its own this morning. Someone going by the handle "Heartland Insider" yesterday leaked the right-wing Heartland Institute's 2012 budget and strategy documents to an environmentalist blog called "DeSmogBlog<http://www.desmogblog.com/heartland-insider-exposes-institute-s-budget-and-strategy>." The conservative Chicago think tank is an active funder of efforts to shed doubt on man-made climate change. It sponsors an annual anti-climate science conference and maintains an active communications operation that, among other things, has promoted the 2009 "Climategate" event, which involves the theft of emails from the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit (CRU). The strategy memo is marked "confidential" and proposes that the Heartland Institute increase efforts to target man-made climate change science, funded especially by "corporations whose interests are threatened by climate policies." The memo proposes that Heartland pay David Wojick, a climate skeptic and contractor with the Office of Scientific and Technical Information at the Energy Department, to develop a curriculum for school children "that shows that the topic of climate change is controversial and uncertain -- two key points that are effective at dissuading teachers from teaching science." The curriculum project's $100,000 budget would be provided by one individual, referred to in the document as "the Anonymous Donor." The same donor has funded the Heartland Institute's climate change program to the tune of $8.6 million over the past five years, according to the leaked budget. It also shows that the Charles G. Koch Foundation -- which is tied to Koch Industries -- gave the think tank $25,000 in 2011 and is expected to donate an additional $200,000 this year. The document argues that the school project is needed because "principals and teachers are heavily biased toward the alarmist perspective," but it does not appear to be against bias in all cases. Later in the memo, its author warns that the business and financial magazine Forbes, which publishes a blog by Heartland Institute senior fellow James Taylor, has "begun to allow high-profile climate scientists (such as [Peter] Gleick) to post warmist science essays that counter our own." "This influential audience has usually been reliably anti-climate and it is important to keep opposing voices out," the memo states. The memo recommends Heartland take its climate message to new mainstream outlets including The New York Times' "Dot Earth" blog, maintained by journalist Andrew Revkin. Joe Romm, a fellow at the left-leaning Center for American Progress (who himself is mentioned in the memo as a "more extreme" communicator of man-made climate change science), said the leaked documents tell a story of corporate-funded disinformation. "I've just never seen anything this explicit," Romm said. Romm said that "Heartlandgate" -- as it is already being called in the blogosphere -- should have more of an impact on the climate science debate than Climategate did. Where Climategate relies on a willful misinterpretation of climate scientists emails that were taken out of context, Romm said that kind of effort would not be needed here. "Nothing is excerpted," he said. "I just think it's kind of jaw-dropping." The Heartland Institute did not return calls for this story.
Stacy D. VanDeveer Associate Professor University of New Hampshire Dept. of Political Science Horton SSC Durham, NH 03824 USA [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> tel: fax: mobile: Skype ID: (+1) 603-862-0167 <http://www.plaxo.com/click_to_call?lang=en&src=jj_signature&To=%28%2B1%29+603%2D862%2D0167&[email protected]> (+1) 603-862-0178 (+1) 781-321-5880 <http://www.plaxo.com/click_to_call?lang=en&src=jj_signature&To=%28%2B1%29+781%2D321%2D5880&[email protected]> stacy.d.vandeveer Want to always have my latest info?<https://www.plaxo.com/add_me?u=51539758810&src=client_sig_212_1_banner_join&invite=1&lang=en> Want a signature like this?<http://www.plaxo.com/signature?src=client_sig_212_1_banner_sig&lang=en> [Description: ia_25th_blucmyk_500]
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