Op-ed: On climate protests, the media misses the point

What does van Gogh matter to billions of victims of climate inaction?

In the face of global inaction, climate change — inextricably linked to health inequities — is leading us toward planetary collapse with a ‘fast track to climate disaster’ and ‘civilization collapse,’ as has been highlighted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.


Yet, much of the narrative — perpetrated by the corporate media, of which, in the U.S., 90% of is controlled by six conglomerates — remains focused on pseudo-optimism akin to the cult of toxic positivity with the logic that if optimism works in other situations, it must work in this too. This approach insists that we must create cognitive dissonance around what needs to be done versus what is being done.

This is not a case against the tremendous amount of evidence that highlights the need to balance effective climate communications with empowering actions that people can take, rather climate optimism is inconsequential, and basically selling snake oil, without transformative changes and actions.

One of the key ways these media narratives keep consumers content around their climate inaction, beyond individual-level action such as expensive organic foods and recycling, is by setting the public’s social reality about the enoughness of these actions and decentering the urgency of transformative societal changes, political action, and sacrifices — primarily by the rich — that are needed to tackle the existential threat of climate change.

The other important way the media supports these narratives is by delegitimizing the dread and desperate pleas and protests calling attention to the existential crisis of climate change. Case in point: the latest protest by youth activists involving an unharmed van Gogh painting.

Media, climate coverage and van Gogh

Much of the U.S. media attention has decentered the reasons for the protest (hint: the planet is on a pathway to collapse on itself due to climate change), instead pontificating about what “the spectrum of acceptable” climate protests ought to be and how these tactics are unproductive, irresponsible and strange, as captured by the article Throwing tomato soup on Van Gogh: Why climate protests are getting weirder, published in the Washington Post. Another example, The Contradictions of Climate Activism, was written by the New York Times’ Ross Douthat, a fellow of the American Enterprise Institute, a right-wing think-tank well known for climate denial and conspiracy theories. This article, perpetuating disinformation, states “...the world has made great progress on alternative energy, which is one reason climate change’s existential risks have dropped meaningfully in recent years, with worst-case scenarios becoming much less likely than before,” while citing a single Substack article by a scientist known for “delivering talking points and conspiracy theories.”

Related: Colonialism, the climate crisis, and the need to center Indigenous voices

These articles, among many others, insist we direct attention to the soup and the painting and not the intended outcome: drawing our attention to our colossal failure to act on climate change. It also highlights that no matter the extreme nature of climate protests, the media has consistently ignored the urgency of the threat.

Polite politics and climate protests

What gets lost in much of this debate and pithy one-liners is the important and insidious function of this coverage, which is to limit the debate on the issue and distract us. Akin to the mindless maxim of ‘violence is never the answer’ and ‘marketplace of ideas’ as the solution, whenever those subjugated and oppressed react, the polite politics of the liberal elites insist just how unproductive it is to engage in the type of protests that might be against their sensibilities and comfort. This narrative forgets that art on a planet headed toward civilizational collapse is the domain of the rich, not in perpetuity but on borrowed time. What does van Gogh matter to billions of victims of climate inaction — that these protesters are drawing our attention to — from Pakistan to Puerto Rico?

Anti-protest legislation 

These narratives also conflate legality and morality, which are not synonymous. This pearl-clutching of what is and isn’t an acceptable form of protest in the face of a collapsing planet also, however inadvertently, give moral legitimacy to fascist measures such as the rise in anti-protest legislation as a response to racial justice protests, which coincides with the militarization of the police and climate inaction.

Anti-protest legislation legitimizes state violence against people protesting for their right to enjoy a life on a habitable planet, while drawing their support from media coverage and the public sentiment that portrays climate activists as ‘radicals.’

Art or life? 

When we buy into these anti-protest narratives we do a disservice to those at the margins of society. While we may not agree with some of their tactics, it is critical that we defend the pursuit of a habitable planet, while reflecting on the question, “what is worth more — art or life?

Dr. Ans Irfan, MD, EdD, DrPH, MPH, MRPL, is an Associate Professor at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, and a senior Agents of Change in Environmental Justice Fellow. He also serves as a Religion and Public Health Fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University.

early season snowmelt drought water
Photo by Jorge Guillen on Unsplash

Early season snowmelt could bring the West summer water scarcity

Climate change is expediting spring snowmelt and replacing snow with rainfall in the Mountain West — making an already arid region increasingly at risk of summer water scarcity, a new study has found.

Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.
canada pnw heatwaves climate
Photo by Jason Hillier on Unsplash

Heat waves are breaking records. Here's what you need to know

Normally, heat records are broken by a few tenths of a degree. But last week in Canada near Hudson Bay–which is still covered in winter ice–a heat record was broken by a huge 7 degrees Celsius or more than 12 degrees Fahrenheit.

Deal is reached to keep Colorado River from going dry, for now

Arizona, California and Nevada have agreed to take less water from the drought-strained Colorado River, a breakthrough agreement that, for now, keeps the river from falling so low that it would jeopardize water supply for major Western cities like Phoenix and Los Angeles as well as for some of America’s most productive farmland.

Fossil fuel firms owe climate reparations of $209bn a year, says study

The world’s top fossil fuel companies owe at least $209bn in annual climate reparations to compensate communities most damaged by their polluting business and decades of lies, a new study calculates.

Emilio Tenuta water conservation
Photo by the blowup on Unsplash

Emilio Tenuta: Is water the ‘forgotten piece’ of the climate puzzle?

Obviously, reducing carbon emissions will be key to a more sustainable future, but there are also other issues that will need to be dealt with - like water.

philadelphia toxics pollution energy
Photo by Robert Linder on Unsplash

Philly toxic air pollution: What you need to know

Philadelphia limits toxic air pollutants like lead and formaldehyde. A policy revision expands the list, but critics say it doesn't go far enough.

Shell facing more climate change pressure following record profits

Shell will hold its annual general meeting tomorrow and the event is widely expected to be dominated by clashes over the energy giant’s record on climate change.

From our Newsroom
halliburton fracking

How the “Halliburton Loophole” lets fracking companies pollute water with no oversight

Fracking companies used 282 million pounds of hazardous chemicals that should have been regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act from 2014 to 2021.

President Joe Biden climate change

Op-ed: Biden’s Arctic drilling go-ahead illustrates the limits of democratic problem solving

President Biden continues to deploy conventional tactics against the highly unconventional threat of climate change.

oil and gas wells pollution

What happens if the largest owner of oil and gas wells in the US goes bankrupt?

Diversified Energy’s liabilities exceed its assets, according to a new report, sparking concerns about whether taxpayers will wind up paying to plug its 70,000 wells.

Paul Ehrlich

Paul Ehrlich: A journey through science and politics

In his new book, the famous scientist reflects on an unparalleled career on our fascinating, ever-changing planet.

oil and gas california environmental justice

Will California’s new oil and gas laws protect people from toxic pollution?

California will soon have the largest oil drilling setbacks in the U.S. Experts say other states can learn from this move.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.