Fake NY Post draws attention to global warming

By MARCUS FRANKLIN (AP) ? 4 hours ago

NEW YORK ? A day before a U.N. summit on climate change, an activist prankster group distributed copies of a fake newspaper mimicking the New York Post to draw attention to global warming.

The front-page story in the newspaper parody Monday warned of "massive climate catastrophes" and "public health disasters."

Volunteers for The Yes Men distributed the free parody outside busy commuter hubs in Manhattan and Brooklyn, including one of the city's main train stations, Penn Station.

Jacques Servin, one of the group's founders, said the Post was targeted as one of the city's most read and most entertainingly written newspapers.

In a statement titled, "Witless Spoof in Flawless Format," the actual Post said: "It's no surprise that they tried to spoof the New York Post; they figured this time they'd choose a paper people actually love to read. But this is a limp effort. It has none of the wit and insight New Yorkers expect from their favorite paper. The Post will not be hiring any of their headline writers."

Last November, volunteers assembled by The Yes Men handed out copies of a fake New York Times across the country. It said the Iraq and Afghanistan occupations had ended, and solutions for global warming, health care and the economy were near.

The latest spoof, distributed in New York, focuses on climate change as the U.N. General Assembly convenes its annual ministerial meeting Wednesday. World leaders were invited to come to New York a day early for a climate summit to generate political momentum ahead of crucial talks in Copenhagen in December on a new treaty to curb global warming.

At first glance, the 32-page fake Post looks nearly identical to the real tabloid, complete with the U.S. flag and the Page Six logo flanking the newspaper's name.

Inside, everything from cartoons to editorials and Page Six celebrity news is dedicated to global warming. Ads include names and phone numbers for elected officials and activist groups.

Yes Men received $10,000 from unspecified donors to pay for printing.

Servin insisted all the information in his newspaper was "very carefully fact-checked." He said "friends" helped the group pull off the prank; he declined to elaborate.

Beth Whitney, a volunteer handing out the newspaper outside Penn Station, thought The Yes Men's strategy could be effective.

"Even if they (readers) think it's real for just a second, for that second it shifts their thinking," the Jersey City, N.J., resident said.

Nearby, another volunteer, Sarah Wellington, of Brooklyn, said passing out copies of a fake Post was more effective than standing on a sidewalk with a clipboard collecting e-mail addresses and donations and promising to lobby for change.

"We have to be creative in getting through to the masses," Wellington said.