ABC's Environmental Alarmist Sam Champion Hypes 'Earth Hour,' Skipped ClimateGate

Published: 3/26/2010 4:30 PM ET

Good Morning America's weatherman and resident environmental alarmist Sam Champion on Friday promoted Earth Hour 2010, a call for people to sit in the dark at 8:30pm local time on Saturday and reflect on global warming. Champion enthused, "So, tomorrow night at 8:30, you can turn your lights off and join people around the world as they say 'Hey, we simply care and that climate change is something we want to make a statement about.'"

To make the concept very clear, the weatherman (see file photo at right) repeated, "That statement is simply that you care." Of course, Champion and GMA found no such time to report on the ClimateGate scandal. On December 09, 2009, when asked about this on Twitter, Champion Tweeted back: "i kno what u refer to! [sic] there is quite a controversy surrounding the veracity of that stolen info...not reportable as such."

On Friday, Champion trumpeted, "We want to tell you that something very special is happening tomorrow night at 8:30 local time around the world. Something that you can take part in by flipping a light switch. It's called Earth Hour." The weatherman didn't explain what specific good Earth Hour will accomplish, other than showing that "you care."

Champion has a long history of pushing climate change alarmism. On January 31, 2007, he hosted a segment that fretted "Will Billions Die from Global Warming? New Details on Thirst and Hunger."

For the 2009 event, NBC's Today show featured actor Ed Norton to talk about Earth Hour. He compared the occasion to the civil rights march on Selma:

ED NORTON: I think it's, it's a call to action. It's, it's, it's-, turning off the lights won't solve the problem, obviously. But in the same way that the, the march on Selma, Alabama was a symbolic gesture for the civil rights movement I think those who care about climal [sic] change, climate change and carbon mitigation - which is a global movement - are, are trying to find ways to symbolically demonstrate the, the unity of purpose around the planet and, and really get our leadership to take action.

A transcript of the brief segment, which aired at 8:04am on March 26 EDT, follows:

SAM CHAMPION: We want to tell you that something very special is happening tomorrow night at 8:30 local time around the world. Something that you can take part in by flipping a light switch. It's called Earth Hour. And last year, nearly a billion people in 87 countries in seven continents turned off their lights to make a statement. Take a look. [Video of people turning off lights all around the world.] And out go the lights. That statement is simply that you care. And the World Wildlife Fund is spearheading this. It's called a call to action. And it's expected to be even bigger than last year, this year. So, tomorrow night at 8:30, you can turn your lights off and join people around the world as they say "Hey, we simply care and that climate change is something we want to make a statement about."