Misinformation

Whenever wildfires burn, the smoke clouds of misinformation rise. Some examples are hard to forget, like US Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene’s 2018 claims involving space lasers and the Rothschilds. But the problem goes beyond such outlandish conspiracies. In recent weeks, a former Canadian foreign minister suggested the fires were a publicity stunt by “green terrorists,” while the Premier of the Province of Alberta focused her crisis response on arson investigations while drawing criticism for avoiding questions on the impacts of climate change.