Climate change: People’s opinions do not change facts
This segment from John Oliver’s new show Last Week Tonight is just brilliant stuff. In four minutes he deals with two of the major issues facing any discussion of climate change:
- That there’s a difference between a fact and an opinion. “You don’t need people’s opinions on a fact.”
- That the media having two talking heads does not create an equal debate.
Oliver’s two core points are really about how you judge the quality of the information you receive via the media. It doesn’t matter how many people espouse an uninformed opinion that questions a fact. And that it certainly does matter how many people amongst those who have studied an issue believe the conclusions to be true.
The ending is perhaps a little weak, but the points made are absolutely fantastic. It just goes to show how Comedy Channel shows like Last Week Tonight and The Daily Show are providing some of the most insightful political commentary available today.