When working on a news story about the seafood industry it is important to understand that many of the prepackaged, ready-made tools that some sources provide are not always what they appear to be. Those staggering statistics and that convenient sound bite science often appear to fit perfectly into a narrative but is it, proverbially, too good to be true?
Many stories about preserving fish stocks and pollution in seafood seem like harmless "responsible" reports when in reality they are tales based on misinformation peddled by an array of environmental activists and lobbyists who go to great pains to obscure their strategies and ultimate agenda.
Known as environmental non-governmental organizations or ENGOs, often they promote ocean conservancy or lobby for environmental protections—and some do a responsible job of it. But others distort facts, twist science and compromise public health with campaigns that confuse consumers and most importantly they rely on the press to tell "their" story.
Sometimes the story itself is one that’s been debunked but lives on because of rhetorical inertia. The old saying goes, “A lie told often enough becomes the truth.” Here, members of the media who eschew research become part of the problem rather than the solution.
And then there are sources, you know the ones who are ever ready to talk, but not every quote worthy statement that emanates from these media darlings is backed by fact. Much of their quasi-science is multisyllabic cover for rhetoric that is far from publish and peer reviewed and even farther from fact.
Welcome to the NFI Truth Squad, where we will introduce you to environmental organizations, activists, and oft-repeated but debunked stories that make up the unholy trinity of alarmist misinformation about eating seafood.
In the end we will ask the tough questions but it is up to you to find the answer.
ENGO's Activist's Media
Environmental Defense Fund Consumer Union Consumer Reports and Canned Tuna
Environmental Working Group (EWG) Dr. Jane Hightower Empty Oceans by 2048?
Got Mercury? TIME and Tuna Terrors
Greenpeace
Mercury Policy Project
Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC)
Oceana
Sierra Club
