British author, Laura Dodsworth, has been warning about Behavioural scientists being used to encourage “covid” compliance, and now “climate” compliance.
note MSNBC owners Comcast involved in the following:
3 Nov: Substack: The News is being Nudged: A joint report from Sky and the UK government’s Nudge Unit reveals a startling collaboration.
by Laura Dodsworth, author “A State of Fear”
Sky announced this week that behaviour change on climate can be driven by TV. It released a video which opened with the lines, “We cannot understate the urgency. But faced with issues of such enormity, what role can we play?”...
Sky announced that it was collaborating with the “independent Behavioural Insights Team”. That sounds more palatable than collaborating with the government doesn’t it? But the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) is one third owned by the Cabinet Office and appears to be on permanent tenure at Downing Street. Can a company which is one third owned by the government be fairly described as “independent”?...
BIT’s report The Power of TV: Nudging Viewers to Decarbonise their Lifestyles makes a number of startling admissions.
“Behaviour change via broadcasting and traditional media has historically been aimed at improving public health, boosting gender equality, and reducing violence. Imagine the potential for emissions reductions if the same methods were used to encourage sustainable behaviours!”...
In addition to Sky, another eleven major UK media brands, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, RTE, Britbox and Discovery, have pledged to increase the amount and “quality” of their climate coverage. So expect the airwaves to be flooded with the techniques suggested in the BIT report. At the same time, expect very little media scrutiny of this astonishing collaboration between nudgers and newscasters. And in print and online, the BBC, The Guardian, The Times and the Financial Times have added specific climate sections to their news.
A few months after the publication of A State of Fear, a government advisor told me that the behavioural scientists are “very pleased with themselves” and “Britain is seen as leading the way in how to manipulate people. There is skipping in Whitehall corridors. The public have been proved to be incredibly sheepish, so there’s more nudge coming.” And so there is.
My book concluded that the UK government’s use of behavioural science during the Covid epidemic lacked transparency and was anti-democratic. BIT’s report might appear to rebut both accusations. Don’t be fooled. It rests upon a survey which says people want to be nudged through the media. But research conducted by biased and vested parties is not a substitute for a democratic mandate. The British public never voted for or consented to the creation of a Nudge Unit to subliminally influence them and then set the news agenda. Furthermore, when behavioural scientists - and by extension the government - influence the news, it risks the inquiry, debate and balance that the media owes the public...
https://lauradodsworth.substack.com/p/the-news-is-being-nudged
1 Nov: Comcast: Behavior Change on Climate Can Be Driven By TV, Says Sky
Seventy per cent of people across Europe are willing to change their behavior to address the climate crisis according to research published today by Sky and the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT).
Using behavioral science techniques, Sky and BIT set out ten new behavioral science principles to guide broadcasters on helping their viewers to take action. The study develops a clear role for content creators and broadcasters to inspire green behaviors from their viewers, as well as revealing data on consumer attitudes to climate change.
It comes at a critical time as experts now widely accept that we must shift the behavior of millions of people to deliver on our collective net zero goals.
The report, “The power of TV: nudging viewers to decarbonize their lifestyles”, is launched at the United Nations’ 26th Climate Conference in Glasgow by Dana Strong, Sky Group CEO, Professor David Halpern, BIT, and Mark Strong, actor and Executive Producer of Sky’s Temple...
https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/behavior-change-on-climate-can-be-driven-by-tv-says-sky
36 page PDF:
October 2021: Behavioural Insights Team: The Power of TV: Nudging Viewers to Decarbonise their Lifestyles
An evidence-based guide for broadcasters
Authors: Kristina Londakova, Jake Reynolds, Alice Farrell, Jordan WhitwellMak, Elena Meyer zu Brickwedde, Abigail Mottershaw, Tania Loke, Toby Park
by The Behavioural Insights Team
https://www.bi.team/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Broadcasters-Report.pdf
check out the Behavioural Insights US team - think Zuckerberg, Microsoft, McKinsey, Obama, etc:
Behavioural Insights Team - US: April Chou
https://www.bi.team/people/april-chou/
Behavioural Insights Team - US: Corey Arnez Griffin
https://www.bi.team/people/corey-arnez-griffin/
Yeah, I don’t watch TV anymore. Stuff like this literally makes me ill. “Entertainment.” Mmm-hm.
If you squint hard enough, it looks a lot like racketeering, doesn’t it?