Bill Nye is no stranger to calling out climate change deniers on their bullshit. He has been talking about climate change on TV shows, Twitter, and in print for decades.
He's also not one to shy away from the topic after natural disasters. After EPA chief Scott Pruit declined to discuss global warming in the wake of hurricanes Harvey and Irma, Nye told an audience in no uncertain terms that "Scott Pruitt is wrong, now is the time to talk climate change."
Now the Science Guy has turned his attention to media coverage of climate change, slamming Fox in a brilliant interview on Wired's Geeks Guide to the Galaxy podcast.
In Bill Nye's latest book, he says that climate change is accepted amongst the younger generations, and it's older generations that are skeptics. Podcast host David Barr Kirtley asked Bill if climate change deniers primarily consisted of older Fox News viewers.
“I will challenge Fox News right now,” Bill replied in the podcast.
“What else do you guys talk about except how bad the other side is? What else do you have going on without straw men and women to knock down? What else is your deal? How much do you report on what’s really going on?”
Bill also attacked Fox News for covering "deep state" conspiracy theories, calling them troubling and silly.
"I just wish those guys would cut it out and go back to being regular journalists and being productive."
He went on to say that climate change denial is largely a generational issue, pointing out that it's very rare to meet a young climate change denier.
"Climate change denial is almost always older people. And it's going to be a near cut thing for humankind; are those older people going to age out and stop voting before or after it's too late to do a lot about climate change. We'll see."
Bill is no stranger to chastising broadcasters. When CNN invited a climate change denier and himself to debate climate change, he told them "“I will say, as much as I love the CNN, you’re doing a disservice by having one climate change skeptic, and not 97 or 98 scientists or engineers concerned about climate change.”
Bill is hopeful, however, about the future. He said that events like Irma and Harvey would raise awareness of climate change in the states that were affected.
“It’s very difficult to tie any one event to global warming and climate change in real time. But as analysis goes on over the next couple years, I’m pretty sure those storm events will be tied to global warming directly by computer models."
"This eventually will soak in and people will get to work on it."
He believes that climate change skeptics can be convinced, citing the chief meteorologist at CNN who used to say climate change wasn't a problem, but who has since changed his mind. Nye said it's not too late to save the planet and repeatedly called for everyone to get to work.
"If we were to pursue renewable energy the way we pursued going to the moon, the way we pursued winning the second world war, we could do that. We could make all our electricity renewable. You could do 80 percent in 20 years, [and] 100 percent in twice that."
"This is in everybody's best interest."
Check out the full interview in Wired, in which Bill also discusses asteroid mining, teaching science, and Star Trek.
3
