Visible everywhere, they act like an underground army. French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) climatologist Christophe Cassou noted their arrival in 2022. In response to his educational posts on X (formerly Twitter), he came across sarcastic comments about the weather, graphs taken out of context and insults. Most of the time, his detractors were anonymous and all disputed the reality of climate change or the responsibility of human activities.
Gradually, these trolls infiltrated his professional mailbox, sometimes posting altered photos of his face when he had just undergone surgery, comparing him to an alcoholic and suggesting that he deserved to be beaten up. "All my posts were attacked, tainted, manipulated, and my words distorted," he summed up. "The role of a scientist is to inform, not to fight disinformation." Exhausted, he stopped his online activity in the summer of 2023. "It's never-ending; trolls attract trolls. So, when the personal attacks became widespread and started to affect my life, I said stop."
The renowned climatologist is not alone. Since the spring of 2022, climate specialists have been experiencing waves of attacks on social media. These attacks are closely linked to current events. With every heat wave, cold snap, publication of a study or report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), hundreds of angry comments surface.
Guillaume Séchet, meteorologist and creator of meteo-villes.com, was called a "clown" and an "idiot". At first, he tried to answer his detractors. "Initially, I took the time to respond, in the interest of transparency. It was in vain; they have a herd mentality and [exhibit] paranoid behavior, seeing manipulation everywhere. People with doubts ask questions and are courteous. On the other hand, these people are just plain nasty." He now filters and blocks actively. "Because one comment attracts others, it's like a weed... It hurts me, and you never get used to being attacked."
Studies confirm climatologists' impressions. In a survey published in February 2022, several researchers, including mathematician David Chavalarias of the Complex Systems Institute, found that the end of the Covid-19 crisis has prompted thousands of conspiracy profiles to choose new topics for their paranoia. The researchers write that today, around 30% of Twitter accounts discussing climate issues are climate skeptics.
Scientists seem to be particularly targeted by this onslaught. IPCC publications are taken out of context or distorted to create an alternative narrative. Expert statements are mocked in a mix of invective and pseudo-expertise, fueled by websites claiming to be "climate realists." "The term 'skepticism' is inappropriate, because skepticism is where science begins, with an important place given to doubts, and it's a healthy approach," said Chavalarias. "I prefer the term 'negationists' because they deny science, mixing statements that are supposed to be common sense, such as 'CO2 is good for plants,' with a biased interpretation of scientific work. This amounts to denial, distortion and manipulation."
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