"Climate Denial's Ugly Side: Hate Mail to Scientists"

"With their work in the crosshairs of a political ideology, climate scientists find themselves under attack via the Internet."

"As delegates from 195 countries work diligently in Paris to hash out an international deal to tackle climate change, their work relies on the huge consensus of climate science that shows the world is headed for a dangerous future if greenhouse gas emissions are not curtailed. But back home in the United States, historically the biggest carbon emitter of all, climate science gets a much rockier reception. In fact, climate scientists find themselves and their work regularly under attack.

Not only are there organized efforts like Lamar Smith's House science committee issuing subpoenas and striving to discredit scientists, but harassment and hate mail arrives every day via the Internet. Their work has found itself in the crosshairs of a political ideology that has an ugly side.

InsideClimate News spoke to nearly a dozen climate scientists and communicators about the harassment they face. For them, death threats, sexist remarks, claims of fraud, bomb threats, letters laced with powdery substances, references to rape and Nazis have become almost standard. According to emails shared with ICN, messages range from derisive ('I hope your mental illness gets better') to downright threatening ('YOU ARE GOING TO HANG SOON!')."

Katherine Bagley and Naveena Sadasivam report for InsideClimate News December 11, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"Funders Flee 'Free-Market' Climate Denial Group" (Greenpeace)

"The Paris Agreement Signals That Deniers Have Lost the Climate Wars" (Guardian)