Climate change denier hired for top position at NOAA


A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
David Legates, a professor of climatology at the University of Delaware who has spent years rejecting the scientific consensus that human activity is causing climate change, confirmed with NPR this weekend that he was hired as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's deputy assistant secretary of commerce for observation and prediction.
NPR says that this suggests Legates will directly report to Neil Jacobs, the acting head of the agency. Legates would not respond to questions about his new role or specific responsibilities.
NOAA oversees climate research and forecasting. In 2007, Legates co-authored a paper that questioned findings about the role of climate change in destroying polar bear habitats; this research was partially funded by grants from ExxonMobil, the American Petroleum Institute lobbying group, and Koch Industries, InsideClimate News reports. He was also in a video promoting the discredited theory that the sun caused global warming.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
NPR notes that Legates is affiliated with the Heartland Institute think tank, which is partly funded by the fossil fuel industry and tries to persuade the public that climate change isn't real and evidence provided by the NOAA and other scientific agencies isn't trustworthy. While it's important to have researchers raise questions, their claims must have science to back them up, and Jane Lubchenco, the head of NOAA under former President Barack Obama, told NPR Legates is "not just in left field — he's not even near the ballpark."
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
What to know when filing a hurricane insurance claim
The Explainer A step-by-step to figure out what insurance will cover and what else you can do beyond filing a claim
By Becca Stanek Published
-
How fees impact your investment portfolio — and how to save on them
The Explainer Even seemingly small fees can take a big bite out of returns
By Becca Stanek Published
-
Enemy without
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
At least 1 dead at Burning Man as thousands remain stranded from flooding
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Earthquake rattles Southern California as Tropical Storm Hilary hits
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Hawaii reportedly downplayed threat of wildfires for years prior to Maui blaze
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Maui wildfire death toll hits 53, expected to rise, in Hawaii's 'largest natural disaster'
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Maui wildfires kill 6, destroy historic tourist town Lahaina
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
3 Western states agree to cut Colorado River use in breakthrough water pact
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
'Out of control' wildfires lead to mass evacuation in Alberta, Canada
Speed Read
By Theara Coleman Published
-
6 dead after rare Illinois dust storm causes highway pileup
Speed Read
By Theara Coleman Published