History

Founded in 1990, The Acton Institute is a think tank from Michigan, which states its mission as “to promote a free and virtuous society characterized by individual liberty and sustained by religious principles,” and “on the basis of ten Core Principles, integrating Judeo-Christian Truths with Free Market Principles.”

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Funded by / Ownership

Father Robert Alan Sirico is an American Roman Catholic priest and the founder of the Acton Institute. He is currently the President of the organization. According to Mother Jones, the Acton Institute received donations from ExxonMobil because of their skepticism about the “oncoming climate catastrophe.” According to Sourcewatch, the Acton Institute received “$3,132,000 from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation.”

Analysis / Bias

Under the bookshop section, they sell books such as “Why Scientists Disagree About Global Warming: The NIPCC Report on Scientific Consensus.”

In this interview, the President and founder of The Acton Institute, Father Robert Alan Sirico, voices his opinion about climate change “What this represents is a national and to some extent international movement of eco-spirituality, eco-theology, which in some instances borders on neo-Paganism. I think this will not have an appeal in the minds and hearts of the average Michigan churchgoer.” 

In another interview with public radio, Fr. Sirico states, “Well, I think it is fair to say that when you wage what is in effect a war on coal or fossil fuels, what you end up doing is increasing the cost of those resources. When you increase the cost of those resources, the poor are further impoverished.”

The Acton Institute website consists of journals, articles, videos, and podcasts. Articles are published with strong, emotionally loaded language such as “Time to chill about the fiery climate apocalypse”  and “No, Tucker Carlson: The U.S. is not, will not, and never should be like Hungary.”

When it comes to sourcing, they utilize credible sources such as Scientific American: “I’m Rich, and You’re Not. So There.” Although the source is credible, the article is misleading as they are refuting a scientific study. In the article above, “Time to chill about the fiery climate apocalypse,” they rely on Michael Shellenberger as a source. Michael Shellenberger is a well-known climate skeptic who has failed fact checks. They also use mostly factual sources such as Libertarian-leaning free-market think tank mackinac.org and public policy think tank Hoover Institution. In general, Acton Institute does not support the consensus of science regarding climate change and holds a conservative-libertarian editorial bias. 

Failed Fact Checks

• None by third-party fact-checkers.
• Consistently relies on sources that fail fact checks, especially in regards to climate change. See above.

Overall, we rate Acton Institute Right Biased based on story selection and editorial positions that favor a conservative-libertarian perspective. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to the use of poor sources that do not support the consensus of science on climate change. (M. Huitsing 03/18/2022) Updated (08/06/2022)

Source: https://www.acton.org/