Another Health Hoax from Gasland’s Josh Fox

Journalist and filmmaker Phelim McAleer is releasing a new short film that draws attention to the scaremongering and deceptive tactics of anti-fracking activists.

GasHoax will be released on Thursday, October 1 to coincide with the premiere of a new Josh Fox film, GASWORKS, which McAleer describes as “a zero credibility film because it comes from filmmaker Josh Fox who has a history of health hoaxes regarding fracking.”

GasHoax will go live at 9 a.m. Eastern on Breitbart.com so the public can know the truth about Josh Fox before his new film airs on MSNBC’s All In with Chris Hayes at 8 p.m.

GasHoax highlights how many of Fox’s claims have been debunked, and it criticizes journalists for continuing to report new claims despite Fox’s record of unethical and misleading journalism.

“Journalists should reject all of Fox’s claims about fracking and health until he corrects the record and apologizes for his notorious film, The Sky Is Pink, which claims that fracking causes breast cancer—a claim rejected by all leading cancer experts,” McAleer said.

McAleer has a history of challenging Fox on his unethical journalism, producing the acclaimed FrackNation documentary to counter Fox’s Gasland film which started the anti-fracking movement. Gasland contains the now infamous “flaming faucet” scene—which Fox has since admitted was deceptive. Fox withheld evidence showing that fracking was not responsible for the flaming faucet because he had decided it was “not relevant.”

Fox’s subsequent short film, The Sky Is Pink, has emerged as Fox’s most egregious hoax. In the film Fox claims that breast cancer spiked when fracking started in the Barnett Shale region of Texas.

“Fox’s breast cancer claim was widely reported by the mainstream media but has since been dismissed as nonsense by every respected cancer expert in the region,” McAleer said. “Fox has never corrected the record or apologized for scaring women and families.”

After the film was released, the Associated Press interviewed cancer experts in the area who debunked Fox’s claim.

According to the Associated Press, Simon Craddock Lee, a professor of medical anthropology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, and David Risser, an epidemiologist with the Texas Cancer Registry, said their research did not show an increase in breast cancer after fracking came to the area.

When challenged by the Associated Press about his breast cancer claims, Josh Fox produced no evidence to back up his scaremongering except that it had been “widely reported.”

McAleer said that MSNBC and the Chris Hayes show, which is premiering Fox’s latest “health and fracking” film, should not give Fox a platform until he clears up his previous fraudulent claims in The Sky Is Pink.

“Josh Fox is an unethical journalist. Everyone knows that except Chris Hayes and MSNBC apparently,” McAleer said. “They need to ask him tough questions, not give him a platform so he can scaremonger and spread fear.”

McAleer said that the first question Chris Hayes should ask Fox is if he stands by the claims made in the Sky Is Pink—and if he doesn’t, if he’s going to withdraw and apologize for the fake breast cancer claims?

“That would be real journalism. The people of america deserve it,” McAleer added.

Breitbart News Executive Chairman, Stephen K. Bannon, said, “Shining a light on corrupt media and unethical journalism is part of a long tradition at Breitbart.com so we are delighted to host the premiere GasHoax, a film that does just that.”