NBC Lauds Japanese G8 Summit for Green Initiatives

With world leaders meeting in Japan for the G8 Summit, conventional wisdom would suggest high commodity prices - which are having a detrimental effect on world economy - would be the focus.

But that wasn't so on the July 6 broadcast of "NBC Nightly News." Instead of reporting on what are seemingly more pressing issues, the segment about the summit highlighted "green" efforts from the host country.

"Mr. Bush is to meet Chinese President Hu Jintao this week on the sidelines of the G8 Summit - where leaders will talk about soaring gas and food prices and the thorny issue of climate change," Yang said. "Officials want to build momentum toward next year's deadline for a global agreement to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions blamed for climate change."

President George W. Bush in April announced his support for establishing federal emissions reduction targets with a goal of stopping greenhouse gas emission growth by 2025. That wasn't enough for "Nightly News," which still managed to find a global warming alarmist with anti-Bush sentiments to bash his efforts.

"I think frankly the other leaders have given up on getting much from this presidency and they're waiting until the next administration takes office next year to try to close the deal," Alden Meyer of the liberal advocacy group the Union of Concerned Scientists said to "Nightly News."

Yang lauded the efforts of Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, who is pushing for an agreement on 50-percent overall reductions in greenhouse gases by 2050.

"He's [Fukuda] tried to use the summit to show the way, demonstrating energy-saving Japanese technology in a zero-emissions house," Yang said.

According to Yang, the summit went all out with the green theme - even creating a press center out of "recycled and reusable material" and cooled with 8,000 tons of snow from the surrounding area. He didn't say how organizers brought in the snow to the press center.