Thirty three years ago, on this day, August 6, 1990, a BBC Panorama documentary made it as far as the colonies….
1990 Political climate [videorecording] / reporter Steve Bradshaw ; producer Charles Furneaux Published Sydney : Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 1990#
(In the UK it had been called “The Big Heat” and was broadcast on May 21.1990)
https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/22a5069010204a1ea1421917335be902
The Big Heat
As the cold war ends, world leaders are already beginning to fight the climate war. They have been warned by scientists that global warming, caused by industrialisation and pollution, will cause a dramatic increase in storms, floods and droughts around the world. But there is bitter disagreement over who should pay the cost of preventing such disastrous climatic change. Should the burden fall on the west, with the risk of recession and a fall in living standards, or should Third World countries also foot the bill, even though it may mean hunger and poverty?
As part of One World week, Stephen Bradshaw reports from Britain, America and India on the politics of the climate, and reveals the latest scientific evidence on the future of our weather. Producer Charles Furneaux Editor Mark Thompson
The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly xxxppm. As of 2023 it is 423ppm, but check here for daily measures.
The context was that there was an insatiable appetite, it seemed, for documentaries about climate change. And the ABC showing this BBC input is nothing particularly newsworthy. But this stuff was going on all the time.
What I think we can learn from this is that when an issue is hot, there is a provision of documentaries, think pieces, books, etc. Most end up in obscurity, deserved or otherwise. Or are cited without being read.
What happened next
The moment passed, it always does. It always has until now – now the issue isn’t going away because the consequences are piling up….
What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.