CNN Editor Disparaged Climate Change Doubters as ‘Creationists’

CNN employees in 2009 discussed the use of outdated polling data, acknowledged bias in favor of then-President Obama, disparaged Americans who believe in the literal meaning of the Bible, and dissed rival Fox News Channel.

Those are among the tidbits contained in 119 hours of secret recordings released Thursday by conservative activist James O’Keefe and his organization, Project Veritas. He said he has about 200 hours in all.

“Just last night, we had producers calling us, freaked out that we had their hosts on tape. A lot of guilty [consciences] at CNN.”

O’Keefe said in an online broadcast that it is the opening salvo in his new mission to hold the media accountable. He offered a $10,000 reward for other tapes that pull back the veil at major news organizations.

“Just last night, we had producers calling us, freaked out that we had their hosts on tape,” he said. “A lot of guilty [consciences] at CNN.”

O’Keefe said he received the recordings from a whistleblower inside CNN. He said is releasing the raw audio and asking the public for help transcribing the recordings, modeling the effort after WikiLeaks, which gained widespread attention last year with its release of thousands of emails stolen from the Gmail account of Hillary Clinton campaign Chairman John Podesta.

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In one segment of the recordings released Thursday, Joe Sterling — who then was news desk editor for CNN’s “The Wire” — expressed his disappointment at the criticism of Obama.

“I mean, I’m a little biased,” said Sterling, now a freelance journalist. “The only spin I think is going on is by Republicans. They hate Obama so much. It doesn’t matter what he does. It doesn’t matter what he thinks.”

In another recording, Sterling declared the debate over climate change settled and unfavorably compared dissenters to creationists.

“That issue, climate change, I mean science is pretty much on board and there are a few dissenters,” he said. “There’s no debate. It’s like, you know, born-agains saying there’s a debate over, you know, creationism and all that stuff. There is no debate.”

Nicky Robertson, who then was the CNN assignment desk editor, called Fox News “unbearable. It’s horrible.”

Another clip shows Sterling downplaying concerns about using outdated polling for a story on Sonia Sotomayor, whom Obama had recently nominated for the Supreme Court. An anonymous employee noted the CNN poll was taken before the Supreme Court overturned a decision that Sotomayor had made as an appeals court judge.

Sotomayor had voted with the majority on an appellate court panel that New Haven, Connecticut, was within its rights to throw out a promotion exam for the city’s fire department because too many whites and not enough minorities had qualified.

Sterling said he did not think the case would change public perception.

“I don’t think we stand to change how people think of her,” he said. “Geez, I mean if someone picked this up, it’s not going to change — it’s not going to change anybody’s opinion.”

The anonymous employee discussed the issue with Arthur Brice, the current executive editor at CNN. She said she had raised the issue with CNN’s deputy political director, pointing out that Rasmussen and CBS had conducted more timely polls. She said Brice told her CNN does not use Rasmussen.

“He said we’re not going to be doing another poll; those are the results we’ll be using,” she said. “So I don’t see how that’s reporting all sides because that poll said hold for release until Friday the 10th.”

Brice expressed sympathy for the employee’s view.

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“I agree,” he said. “I think it’s dishonest to use outdated information if new information shows something that is in variance with what you’re reporting. It’s just, it’s dishonest.”

In his online broadcast Thursday, O’Keefe said the exchange shows CNN executives were “basically saying they’re using fake polls, which buttresses [President Donald] Trump.”

CNN did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But Brian Stelter, host of CNN’s “Reliable Sources,” took a pre-emptive shot at O’Keefe Wednesday in a story that mentioned his arrest on charges of entering federal property under false pretenses after he tried to make a recording in the office of then-Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.).

“Given his track record, many consider O’Keefe discredited, and not a serious journalist,” Stelter wrote.

O’Keefe on Thursday called the story a “hit piece.” He called the media “deeply corrupt” and said this is only the beginning of his new campaign.

“This is kind of a new era for citizen journalists,” he said. “And it’s my strategy to go after the media.”

He added, “We’re about to reach a tipping point. Maybe we already have … This is the first shots fired in an effort to crack the dam open.”