At the New York Times, Carrie Halperin and Sean Patrick Farrell have a video from July 5 of this year on "California's Drought, Explained." The problem is that the drought isn't accurately explained. At about 40 seconds into the video, the narrator states that "so far this year, California has had only 20 percent of its normal rainfall and the state's snowpack, another crucial water source, is only 18 percent." Who knows what the NYT is trying to communicate, but it is surely misleading its readers. While the statewide drought in California is severe, the NYT is most definitely overstating its severity. For all this paper's smugness on science communication skills, it often does a terrible job at conveying the facts without bias or error. California's statewide precipitation to date this year (May is the latest month available) has been 9.32 inches, or 67% of normal -- which is 13.83 inches. That is a long way from somewhere around 20...(Read Full Post)