I was channel hopping yesterday morning, when I saw the actor Jason Watkins being interviewed on Good Morning Britain. Being an admirer of his work I thought I'd listen to the interview, even though it was half way through. He was talking about a new drama he is starring in that has been commissioned by the BBC, called 'The Trick'. Apparently, it was about a climate researcher whose emails were hacked and doctored by 'deniers'. He went on to describe how untruths and agendas are repeated and repeated till they become fact. Below is a couple of paragraphs from a write up I found online regarding the programme. Sound familiar?
Professor Philip Jones received a barrage of hate mail and death threats that pushed him close to suicide after it was claimed emails, hacked from his laboratory, proved climate change research was a fraud.
Jones was head of the Climatic Research Unit at East Anglia University in Norwich in 2009 when thousands of documents and emails were stolen from its computers.
Contents from the emails were carefully selected and used by climate change deniers to promote the idea that scientists were falsely alleging fossil fuel emissions were warming the planet – but these allegations were later rejected in several enquires.
It adds: “The film also charts the unjustified persecution of Phil Jones, his wife Ruth’s support of her husband and the fight for the ultimate exoneration of himself and the science.”
“There was a definite strategy at work and a massive disinformation campaign. Yet, when I talk to those who remember any of it now, most still think a scientist really did get caught tweaking the figures.
I couldn't help but notice the correlation between this topic and the Der Spiegel shite that bites us on the arse, by every man and his dog with an axe to grind against our club or owners. I wonder if the BBC will commission a drama
about the lies spread around by that 'rag', that has done untold damage to our reputation. I won't hold my breath.
While these lies and agendas are floating around in cyberspace, they can be used by anyone with an agenda at any given time. It will never, ever, go away unless it is challenged forcibly and legally. Again, I won't hold my breath.
