Despite the ascent of Tony Abbott to the Liberal Party leadership and some recent unhelpful comments by the Chair of the ABC, Maurice Newman, there are some glimmerings that the irrational backlash against global warming science may be peaking.

The backlash can be seen as part of a broader attack on evidence-based, sensible debate that has been systematically promoted in Australia over the past several decades.  The attack has ranged over many social and political topics, including asylum seekers and the “history wars”, which concern our forebears’ treatment of indigenous people.  It has also taken on an explicitly anti-science tone in recent years.

It is revealing to examine the nature of the climate controversy, and to spell out exactly what the approach of climate “sceptics” implies about how we should determine policy.  There are also lessons on how our political process can be distorted by disinformation and by superficial interpretations of “balance” in reporting.

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