A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT
The House Oversight and Reform Committee held a hearing Monday on the Bush Administration's control over scientific findings regarding climate change. The hearing centered around claims of censorship by Dr. James Hansen, director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
"In my more than three decades in government, I have never seen anything approaching the degree to which information flow from scientists to the public has been screened and controlled as it has now," Dr. Hansen testified. "Review and editing of scientific testimony by the White House OMB (Office of Management and Budget) seems to now be an accepted practice."
Dr. Hansen highlighted multiple instances when Administration officials had edited scientific findings and prohibited him from talking freely to the media. He also complained that NASA's Earth Science Research and Analysis budget was reduced retroactively by 20% last year, preventing the development of new technology and the effective use of existing surveying tools. "One way to avoid bad news: stop the measurements!" he said
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/alerts/208