Sacramento, C.A. – The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a Washington D.C. based think tank funded in part by the oil and automotive industries, recently purchased time in two California markets to run an ad which dismiss the dangers of carbon emissions and climate change.

"The ads distort legitimate scientific problems by implying that the earth’s climate is not threatened by increased carbon emissions resulting from human activity," explains Assemblywoman Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley) in a letter she recently sent to the station managers who are running the ads. "The commercials quote a portion of a study that has found that interior ice mass in Greenland and Iceland has been increasing. They conveniently leave out that the study also found that exterior ice is melting, offsetting or even outweighing gains in ice mass made in the interior."

The researcher whose study was quoted by CEI has challenged the ads. "These television ads are a deliberate effort to confuse and mislead the public about the global warming debate. They are selectively using only parts of my previous research to support their claims. They are not telling the entire story to the public," said Engineering Professor Curt Davis of the University of Missouri in a press release.

"A 2001 study conducted by eleven of the nation’s leading climate scientists for the National Research Council concluded that climate change is occurring right now. Recent changes are mostly a result of human activities," said Hancock.

Please call Hans Hemann at 916-319-2014 for more information. Attached is the letter sent to station managers who have decided to run the ad.

Dear General Manager:

I urge you to decline the offer of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) to buy advertising time on your station until they correct the false information and misleading claims presented in their ads.

CEI, a Washington-based group funded by oil companies, the auto industry and big tobacco is attempting to buy television advertising time in Sacramento and Santa Barbara for two advertisements that make false statements and are aimed at misleading Californians into thinking that global warming and climate change are not major issues. These industry-supported commercials are deceptive and full of misinformation.

The ads distort legitimate scientific problems by implying that the earth’s climate is not threatened by increased carbon emissions resulting from human activity.

For example, the commercials quote a portion of a study that has found that interior ice mass in Greenland and Iceland has been increasing. They conveniently leave that the study also found that exterior ice is melting, offsetting or even outweighing gains in ice mass made in the interior. In addition, the interior ice growth is due to increased precipitation, which leading scientists say is a predicted side effect of global warming.

The researcher, Engineering Professor Curt Davis of the University of Missouri whose study was quoted by CEI challenged the ads in a press release, saying "These television ads are a deliberate effort to confuse and mislead the public about the global warming debate. They are selectively using only parts of my previous research to support their claims. They are not telling the entire story to the public."

A 2001 study conducted by eleven of the nation’s leading climate scientists for the National Research Council concluded that climate change is occurring right now. Recent changes are mostly a result of human activities; and global warming compounds itself, meaning that as the temperature rises nature amplifies the warming trend, setting the stage for an even warmer 21st century than anticipated.

The attempts by the CEI and the oil industry to distort and ignore a very serious issue are troubling. Again, I urge your station not to run these deceptive advertisements until these concerns are addressed.

Sincerely,

LONI HANCOCK
Chair of the Natural Resources Committee