Popular UK news outlet The BBC is receiving backlash for a list about climate change on their educational children's site, BBC Bitesize.
BBC Bitesize published the list on the children's site and included both "the positive and negative" aspects of climate change. Included in the "positive" impacts of climate change were topics such as tourism and increase in oil availability.
While the "positive" aspects of climate change included topics such as "flourishing" animal and plant life as well as climate change leading to "healthier outdoor lifestyles", many people felt climate change should not be taught in such a way to compare positive and negative effects.
The reasoning for this is because many feel what potential benefits climate change may yield greatly pale in comparison to the environmental and societal costs.
One such person is writer and environmentalist George Monbiot. Monbiot, upon seeing the published list of the "positive" impacts of climate change, took to Twitter to call out The BBC.
This is what @bbcbitesize is teaching our children about climate breakdown. I'm sorry, but it's an absolute disgrace. You could come away thinking: "on balance, it sounds pretty good". It could have been written by Exxon.
The BBC has a long and disgraceful history of both-sidesing the greatest threat to life on Earth. Every so often, it puts out a memo claiming it has got its act together. Then it fails again. People who make this content believe "neutrality" = impartiality. It's the opposite.
The BBC has a long and disgraceful history of both-sidesing the greatest threat to life on Earth. Every so often, it puts out a memo claiming it has got its act together. Then it fails again. People who make this content believe "neutrality" = impartiality. It's the opposite.— George Monbiot (@George Monbiot) 1625129147
Monbiot also went on to criticize the supposed "positive" impacts listed.
Here is one of the "positive" aspects of the collapse of our life support systems it lists: "more resources, such as oil, becoming available in places such as Alaska and Siberia when the ice melts". Are they actually trying to misdirect and bamboozle GCSE students?
Here is one of the "positive" aspects of the collapse of our life support systems it lists: "more resources, such as oil, becoming available in places such as Alaska and Siberia when the ice melts".\nAre they actually trying to misdirect and bamboozle GCSE students?— George Monbiot (@George Monbiot) 1625129347
Monbiot's comment led other well-known individuals, such as journalist Henry Mance and Advantage Schools CEO Stuart Lock, to to also criticize The BBC's decision to try to make climate change palatable for children.
Mance pointed out the list portrayed the usage of oil, which leads to harmful emissions that damage the environment, in a positive light.
the BBC Bitesize is telling kids that an upside of climate change is that we'll be able to burn more oil\n\n"Positive impacts include... more resources, such as oil, becoming available in places such as Alaska and Siberia when the ice melts"— Henry Mance (@Henry Mance) 1625129438
Meanwhile, Lock went so far as to call the list out as "flat wrong".
Dear @bbcbitesize, I think this is flat wrong, doesn\u2019t align with the national curriculum or exam specs, and needs reconsidering. From https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zcn6k7h/revision/5\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/dOwXN1Lsbo— Stuart Lock (@Stuart Lock) 1625091887
The BBC quickly responded to Monbiot's thread, stating they would look into his complaint.
Hi George, thank you for your comment. We have passed this on to the relevant team and are assessing the guides in relation to the latest ed specs from the relevant exam boards.— BBC Bitesize (@BBC Bitesize) 1625130092
After Monbiot's thread, many Twitter users also took to the forum to express their outrage over the list aimed at children.
Is this some kind of sick joke?!!! People are dying from obscene hot weather and we\u2019re meant to be excited about new holiday destinations?! @bbcbitesize this is unacceptable https://twitter.com/georgemonbiot/status/1410518152849526784\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/MSU1hCree8— Faiza Shaheen (@Faiza Shaheen) 1625145086
Not only do they have the audacity to list 'positive' impacts of climate change, but it literally says one of them is the melting ice caps allowing us to access EVEN MORE OILhttps://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/1410518152849526784\u00a0\u2026— Adam Goddard (@Adam Goddard) 1625137554
Developed countries believing their "right to tourism" is more important than the world literally melting has been the most disgusting thing to come out of this pandemic, utterly shameless it's been labelled here as a "positive aspect of climate change"https://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/1410518152849526784\u00a0\u2026— Maddie \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf8 (@Maddie \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf8) 1625139492
Many users also echoed Monbiot's criticism of The BBC's attempt at "neutrality" over the issue.
the problem with "objectivity" imagined as "two sides say something, we shrug and print them"https://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/1410518152849526784\u00a0\u2026— Sarah Jaffe (@Sarah Jaffe) 1625132272
BBC Bitesize here, both-sidesing the Apocalypsehttps://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/1410518152849526784\u00a0\u2026— John Henry Falle (@John Henry Falle) 1625131048
Since Monbiot's original call-out, The BBC has taken the list of climate change "positives" off of the BBC Bitesize page and focused solely on the negative impacts of climate change.
While they have amended the page, The BBC has not yet issued any other comments about the list.
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