MEDIA RELEASE

13 August 2009

Air Con author preparing defamation papers against Herald columnist and newspaper

The author of an international bestseller on climate change is preparing to sue the New Zealand Herald and one of its journalists for defamation.

Ian Wishart, whose book Air Con has been a #1 bestseller in New Zealand and on Amazon.com in the United States, says Herald columnist Chris Barton has gone a bridge too far by defaming him without first reading the book.

“Barton has accused me of being dishonest, and or stupid, on the issue of climate change,” Wishart said today.

“Honest opinion is one thing, but when such allegations are leveled even though Barton has not actually read Air Con and instead relied on a discredited review by a rival pro-anthropogenic global warming author, Barton and the Herald need to face up to their own stupidity,” Wishart said.

“Air Con is packed full of peer-reviewed scientific papers. It has been read and positively reviewed around the world, including by climate scientists. A negative review based on a genuine appraisal of the book is perfectly fine, but for the Herald to publish Barton’s vitriol on the basis of someone else’s flawed hatchet-job of a review is ridiculous. Barton has done journalism a major disservice today, in my opinion, not just in relation to me but in relation to a number of other people he has defamed.”

“Barton has admitted to me that he has not read Air Con, but claimed he was entitled to take a swipe at me on the basis of Gareth Renowden’s review at Hot-Topic. If he wants to rely on Renowden as the ‘true facts’ in support of his opinion in court, good luck to him,” said Wishart, who added that he may widen the lawsuit to include Renowden as well.

SOME REVIEW COMMENTS ON AIR CON:

“This book by New Zealand journalist Ian Wishart a #1 bestselling author four times, surprised me by the completeness with which he reviewed and presents alternatives to the plethora of IPCC inspired spin and publicity which floods our media today. His sixteen chapters examining aspects of the debate are meticulously footnoted and thus are a valuable reference resource for those wishing to dig deeper or keep up to speed with the unfolding global warming / carbon reduction political drama in years to come. --Dr Warwick Hughes, climatologist

Ian Wishart's AIR CON is another masterpiece of scientific reason, letting the thinking world know that so-called man-made global warming is the greatest scam ever aimed at humanity. Please read this book. - Professor David Bellamy, England

ENDS

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