Allison Fisher

On January 31, President Donald Trump ordered the abrupt release of billions of gallons of water from two California dams, suggesting that it could have prevented the state’s devastating wildfires and claiming, “Everybody should be happy about this long fought Victory!” But the water release in no way supports wildfire suppression efforts and could actually hurt farmers by leaving less water in the dams for the summer when they need it. Fox News has largely ignored Trump’s claimed “victory” after weeks of right-wing media hammering the state’s water policies. While signing new executive orders in the Oval Office three days after the water releases, Trump even lamented that the move “should have gotten a lot of press, but it didn't get much.” However, Trump’s order has been covered by local and legacy media outlets, whose reporting wholly contradicts Trump’s claims and condemns his policy — in one case going so far as calling it “the stupidest water action in the history of Californ

On January 24, while visiting hurricane disaster areas in North Carolina, President Donald Trump told reporters that his administration would likely “recommend that FEMA go away” while letting “the state take care of the tornadoes and the hurricanes and all of the other things that happen.” Trump’s comments mirror recommendations made by Project 2025 — the conservative blueprint that Trump tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Trump’s comments about the Federal Emergency Management Agency come in the wake of a right-wing misinformation campaign targeting the agency and at a time when climate change, which he has called a hoax, is making extreme weather events more destructive and costly. Notably, Trump does not have the authority to dissolve FEMA — that would require an act of Congress, and as The New York Times has pointed out: “Historically, lawmakers from both parties have supported FEMA, knowing that their district or state could need the agency’s help at any time.”

On January 20, as part of his day one executive orders, President Donald Trump directed several U.S. agencies to restart a policy from his first term that reroutes water from Northern California to Southern California. The order ties Trump’s policy to the devastating fires in California that are so far responsible for 28 deaths and more than $250 billion in damages, effectively canonizing the false right-wing media claim that current California water policy impeded efforts to contain the LA fires. 

On Fox News, Pete Buttigieg swats down misinformation about electric vehicles

CNN's Bill Weir reports on climate stakes in 2024 election and dispels common climate narratives

Mainstream cable news and broadcast networks undercovered former President Donald Trump’s pledge to cut energy prices by 50% within one year of taking office — a plan experts have noted he would be unlikely to achieve absent a global recession.  As CNN economic reporter Matt Egan reported: “If we see sub-$2 gasoline, it will be because of some awful things taking place in the economy.”  The lack of coverage is particularly glaring, not only because it allows this pledge — a core tenet of Trump’s plan to bring down inflation — to go mostly unscrutinized, but also because the economy has consistently polled as a top issue for voters.  A Media Matters analysis found that from August 14, when Trump announced the pledge at a rally in North Carolina, through October 28: Combined, cable news networks CNN and MSNBC and corporate broadcast networks – ABC, CBS, and NBC – dedicated only 19 minutes to the pledge. Of the networks that covered it, CNN aired the most coverage, with 13 minutes. MSNBC air

Misinformation related to the ongoing response to Hurricane Helene, which has created widespread devastation across six states and left at least 232 dead, is disrupting relief operations, and a number of local and state officials are calling on bad actors and the Trump campaign to stop spreading the lies. The Sunday morning political shows attempted to address this hurricane misinformation with varying degrees of success. With the exception of Fox News Sunday, all the shows rightly pointed out the threat misinformation and unfounded conspiracy theories pose to the response efforts while flagging some of the most prevalent lies polluting these efforts. The most prevalent misinformation has centered on the distribution of Federal Emergency Management Agency aid, specifically the false claims that federal assistance is limited to $750 per affected individual and that FEMA funds are lacking due to spending on immigrant assistance. Bad actors have also pushed an overarching falsehood that the response has been a f

The October 1 CBS vice presidential debate between Sen. JD Vance of Ohio and Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, which was moderated by network anchors Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan, featured a key segment about climate change that stood out from previous debates in three important ways: The issue was featured early in the debate, instead of being relegated to an afterthought. The questions continued the vital trend of moving away from asking candidates whether they believe in climate change and instead asking about their plan to address its reality. Finally, moderators included a rare (albeit brief) fact-check reinforcing the truth that climate change is happening now.

On September 30, the MSNBC Morning Joe hosts called out Donald Trump for criticizing the Biden administration's response to Hurricane Helene while repeating right-wing media climate denial during a rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday. Trump referred to climate change as “one of the great scams of all time” and suggested it has fallen off the national stage “because people aren't buying it anymore.” Right-wing media have a long history of denying climate change, particularly as it relates to extreme weather events like hurricanes.  Hurricane Helene was super-charged by warm ocean temperatures “made at least 300 times more likely by climate change.” Its destruction has left millions without power and killed at least 90 people across five states. Trump is reportedly heading to Georgia today to survey the damage, while both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have confirmed they will visit the storm site when their trips would not interfere with response efforts. In addition to Trump’s

During The New York Times’ “Climate Week NYC” discussion with Heritage Foundation president and Project 2025 architect Kevin Roberts, reporter David Gelles outlined the right-wing initiative’s regressive approach to climate change and the environment. Gelles also noted that Project 2025's call to dismantle climate action comes as the world is already experiencing the consequences of a warming climate, pointing out that a record number of people in the Phoenix, Arizona, area were killed by extreme heat this year alone. Roberts responded by pointing to Heritage Foundation research claiming that there has been a “reduction in climate deaths — climate-related deaths — over the last century by 98%.” Not only is this a red herring argument used by climate deniers to downplay the climate crisis, but that reduction is reportedly due in part to improved forecasting, which is done by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency Project 2025 has called to dismantling.