this post was submitted on 11 Oct 2024
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‘It’s mindblowing’: US meteorologists face death threats as hurricane conspiracies surge (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 2 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world
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Storms Helene and Milton have triggered rise of misinformation stoked by Trump and fellow Republicans

Meteorologists tracking the advance of Hurricane Milton have been targeted by a deluge of conspiracy theories that they were controlling the weather, abuse and even death threats, amid what they say is an unprecedented surge in misinformation as two major hurricanes have hit the US.

A series of falsehoods and threats have swirled in the two weeks since Hurricane Helene tore through six states causing several hundred deaths, followed by Milton crashing into Florida on Wednesday.

The extent of the misinformation, which has been stoked by Donald Trump and his followers, has been such that it has stymied the ability to help hurricane-hit communities, according to the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema).

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[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 35 points 2 months ago (3 children)

What's going to happen if (when?) a meteorologist actually gets murdered over this?

If I were a meteorologist, I would refuse to go on the air after that. Could you blame any of them for wanting to preserve their own lies? Which will inevitably lead to more people getting killed in weather events.

This is so fucked up.

[–] FaceDeer@fedia.io 44 points 2 months ago (2 children)

It's anti-vaxx all over again. I knew these people were insane and stupid, but still, "anti-meteorology" wasn't on my bingo card.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 26 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Except worse, because I know some meteorologists from my time working in local TV. Doctors get into medicine much of the time because they want to help people. In my experience, meteorologists get into it because they think the weather is really fucking cool and they love telling people about it. That's a much smaller incentive to keep doing what you do when your life could be in danger. At that point, and again I'm just speaking for me, meteorology would become a hobby.

[–] macarthur_park@lemmy.world 25 points 2 months ago (1 children)

This has already played out exactly as you’re predicting: The Weatherman Who Tried to Bring Climate Science to a Red State

In 2021, Chris Gloninger, a television weatherman in Boston with a passion for climate science, was approached with an intriguing prospect. Would he consider a job as chief meteorologist at a television station in Des Moines?

It was a smaller market, and talk of global warming would be challenging in a politically conservative state. But research from 2020 showed that most Iowans were interested in news about climate change, and the state was a leader in wind energy. Mr. Gloninger’s weather forecasts could be a breakthrough.

He quit after death threats.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 20 points 2 months ago

And that's just threats. If/when one gets murdered, it won't matter if it's a red state or a blue state. They'll all consider their lives at risk. In an occupation that, unless you're a storm chaser, is not one where the person doing it thinks is going to be an issue.

[–] someguy3@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Once they became anti-librarian, anything is possible.

[–] andrewta@lemmy.world 7 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I know you meant lives not lies, but it’s an interesting typo

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 3 points 2 months ago

Ah fuck, yeah I did.

[–] InverseParallax@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

We should just stop any weather predictions for the South.

Let it all be God's surprise to them, and if a surprise hurricane comes up and knocks them on their ass, well, God works in mysterious ways.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 7 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Or not because there are plenty of good people in the South who are worried about these threats and worried about climate change and try to get politicians who are also worried about climate change into office so they can do something about it. Those people are in the minority, but they still exist.

Also, plenty of children.

[–] InverseParallax@lemmy.world 5 points 2 months ago

As someone who escaped, we should set up funds to let decent people leave for civilized places.

I simply do not consider the south redeemable at this point, we've given them 150 years and it's just been a cancer on the rest of the country.