The Kochs' Climate Change Denial Media Machine [1]
Submitted by Anne Landman [2] on
Billionaire brothers Charles [3] and David Koch [4] of Koch Industries [5], the second largest privately-held energy company in America, have poured millions of dollars into creating a web of media influence to increase their power to sow doubt about climate change [6] among the American public. A network of bloggers, pundits, think tanks and foundations get funding from the Kochs, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute [7], which has received over $700,000, and the libertarian Cato Institute [8], which has received $13 million from the Kochs since 1998. The Manhattan Institute [9] received $1.5 million, Americans for Prosperity [10] has gotten $5.5 million, the Pacific Research Institute [11] has gotten $1.2 million and the Federalist Society [12] $2 million. This web of think tanks and foundations operates blogs and Web sites and house prominent writers who pump out climate denial writings that help spread the Kochs' anti-climate change ideology. The Kochs' influence isn't limited to fringe media, either. Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer [13], who writes for the Weekly Standard and the Washington Post, Philip Anshutz [14], owner of the Examiner newspapers and the Weekly Standard, Stephen Moore, a Wall Street Journal editorial board member, are just some of the conservative media figures who attend the Kochs' exclusive, private annual gatherings.