How PSPS coverage steers public blame

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project

How the media will drive coverage of PSPS

I wrote a bit back about how the media polarize coverage of ICE and efforts to enforce immigration law. As part of that I pointed to being aware of media narratives, of the paradigms they have which guide their coverage and, in a feedback loop, how their readers see their reality. That newsletter is linked first below if you’re wanting the context.

I thought of that dynamic when I read a recent CPR article on businesses impacted by Xcel’s Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS). That article is second below, but the pertinent bit for me is the following quote (copied here with links intact):

“Xcel’s “Public Safety Power Shutoffs” may become more common, as Colorado contends with drought and record-high winter temperatures that are making fire ‘season’ a year-round trend. High winds are also nothing new to Boulder. “

Re-read the quote and note the order of the sentences.

Re-read the latter sentence.

Lastly note what’s missing here.

Wind up near Boulder, “high winds”, are nothing new. Why the power shutoffs now?

Drought and high winter temps undoubtedly play a part, but focusing there so we can continue to hammer away at climate change ignores the complete picture.

Xcel got sued. They and their insurance company want certainty and less risk of legal action.

Xcel could have hardened the lines in known high wind areas. They could be buried. Xcel could undertake regular maintenance on the lines (including mitigation of vegetation).

Watch the media coverage, however, especially in the liberal media. The narrative will focus on climate change more and less on choices made by Xcel (both recent and ones in the past to decide to NOT address a known problem).

This is the narrative their reading base wants to consume. This will be what they deliver. And in consuming a steady diet of it, this will further reinforce the idea that climate change and weather necessitate PSPS.

It did not have to be this way. This is partly a function of weather/climate. It’s also partly a function of human choice.

https://coloradoaccountabilityproject.substack.com/p/the-left-leaning-media-in-colorado?utm_source=publication-search

https://www.cpr.org/2026/01/15/businesses-impacted-xcel-wind-power-outage/

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More disingenuous climate coverage from CPR

I thought I’d tack another quick second example of some disingenuous reporting from CPR to help drive my point in the second post today home. The CPR article I want to reference in this post is linked below.

I won’t go word-by-word for you, but note the headline and a quote:

“Climate threats lead to huge jumps in Colorado home insurance rates, and the state is seeking solutions”

“Climate experts say that [rising homeowners insurance rates] is partly a result of more frequent and damaging weather driven by a warming planet.”

Ah, good old “experts.” The kind without names and without verbatim statements we could put in.

To her credit, the CPR reporter does actually spend some time on what is likely driving 80% of the increase in homeowner’s insurance rates in Colorado: the cost to build has gone up, the value of property has gone up, and people in Colorado are building further out into the interface between wild land and city (as well as just taking up more land with houses–when hail used to fall on dirt on the plains, it didn’t matter but when you put a house there it causes damage and expense). The climate change bit is actually a minor fraction of the whole article.

Yet it’s there. It’s there for the same reason I highlighted in post 2 today. It’s there for the readers who expect it.

READ THE FULL COMMENTARY AT COLORADO ACCOUNTABILITY PROJECT

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