Grappling with Gore-o-phobia

Alex Bogusky

Are we really still debating that climate change is for real?

Apparently and regrettably so, according to former Vice President Al Gore, who on Aug. 26 was interviewed via live webcast by iconoclastic ad man Alex Bogusky, the former creative chief of Crispin Porter + Bogusky who recently turned heads with the launch of FearLess Revolution.

Fox News “reported” on the interview with the headline “Gore Compares Climate Change Skeptics to 20th Century Racists,” and a lead suggesting he really “pushed the rhetorical envelope” this time. As if that sums up all pertinent information in the hour-long interview. Literally, Gore’s quote here was all that was communicated via Mediaite – enough to demonstrate the sensationalism of the headline, but not enough to stop the Fox News audience from having a field day posting angry reactions, right on cue.

Of course, unless you are the profitability interests of Big Oil or Big Coal, or a powerful media tool propagating said interests, there’s not much reason to fear a FearLess Revolution, nor Gore’s humble and careful explanations of both the challenges and opportunities in dealing with climate change. Which, in case you missed it, is well underway.

“It’s dangerous for the U.S. to be a nation that isn’t guided by science,” Bogusky says. “We’ve been good when we follow science.”

In reality, parts of the hour-long interview are more reminiscent of your middle school science teacher relaying science (we recommend forwarding the interview to about 22:30, when things rev up).

Video streaming by Ustream

What’s most interesting in bringing Gore to a live conversation with branding expert Bogusky is how the conversation about climate change naturally steers toward the medium and the message.

In fact, Gore does an excellent job of summing up how special interests and the dominant media landscape disseminate misinformation and damage productive dialogue on the most critical issues of our day, with examples including the build up to war in Iraq (“Shock and Awe,” anyone?), the mortgage crisis leading to our current financial meltdown, and of course climate change. While the Internet he may or may not have had a hand in inventing democratizes information, Gore and Bogusky point out that cable news networks and all their polarizing diatribes reign supreme in an environment where the average American watches five hours of TV per day -- and rising.

“The way they speak,” Gore tells Bogusky, “these are 30 second emotional hot-button messages that drive toward the lowest common denominator.”

Funny how the Fox News piece conveniently missed these parts of the interview and yet did an excellent job of reinforcing them.

At 35 minutes, the Q&A turns from challenge toward opportunity, highlighting current exponential growth in solar markets, and the job-creation opportunities therein.

“Last year alone the cost of energy from photovoltaics alone came down 30 percent,” Gore says, adding that the number of solar installations also doubled over the previous year. And not while enjoying the same subsidies, tax advantages and market control that Big Oil and Big Coal enjoy.

As Gore began to address his sense that the U.S. political system is in “really deep trouble,” Bogusky steered him back to the dramatic innovation underway within private industry, accompanied by the ubiquitous tip of the hat to Wal-mart’s sustainability achievements.

“Governments I guess can afford to not face reality for at least a certain amount of time,” Bogusky says. “Businesses really can’t.”

If you’re wondering why Bogusky and Gore would be chatting online on a Friday in late in August while Hurricane Irene was rolling toward North Carolina, it’s because Bogusky is collaborating with partners Dagny Scott and Rob Schuham to launch a global ad campaign for Gore's Climate Reality Project.

The first spot (below) advertises an event on Sept. 14 called 24 Hours of Reality, designed to focus the world for a full day on the scientific realities of climate change. The campaign includes an opportunity for backers to “donate" their Twitter feeds to the cause.

Says AdWeek of the new spot: “It’s not the most creative piece of communication ever, but the kinetic-typograhpy approach is commonly used when you're juggling a lot of facts and figures."

Bogusky is a keynote speaker of the Sustainable Industries Economic Forum coming Oct. 20 to San Francisco’s St. Regis Hotel (where Gore coincidentally owns a luxury condo). Tickets to the event are on sale now.