European Heat: Record Temps, Excess Deaths, Climate Change and Biased Headlines

As a deadly heatwave has made its way across Europe over the past week and stoked debate between the right and the left, media outlets have published biased headlines centered around climate change, European bureaucracy, and air conditioning.

Record Temps: Temperatures have hit record highs ranging from 105 to 113 Fahrenheit across the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, France, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, and Poland. The Guardian (Left bias) highlighted several of these records in an article and reported on fires that broke out in eastern Germany.

Death Toll: Many outlets noted that the heat has caused at least 1,300 excess deaths in Europe so far since June 21, according to the WHO. Euronews (Center) said the toll includes children locked in cars and young people who drowned in unsupervised swimming spots. It also reported that some scientists said this heat would have been "'virtually impossible' this early in the summer without climate change." CNN (Lean Left) also highlighted this. The Guardian reported on deaths and injuries in the Western European countries of France, Germany, Spain, and Belgium.

For Context: On June 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) said heat has caused over 200,000 deaths across Europe over the last four years and that "nearly all of them were preventable."

RELATED: Heatwave Stokes Partisan Debate on Air Conditioning in Europe

France: Much of the mainstream reporting on the heat has centered on France. Many outlets noted that France has been the hardest hit, reporting about 1,000 excess deaths. French state media France24 reported that mortuaries in Paris are "overwhelmed" and "full to the brink." Several outlets from the right published critical coverage of France. Fox News (Right) highlighted that Paris Deputy Mayor Audrey Pulvar blamed the United States for a "significant amount" of the heat-related struggles in France because of its greenhouse gas emissions and widespread use of air conditioning. European Conservative (Lean Right) described Paris' attempt to conserve water as "half-baked." It also published an opinion, "Heatwave in France Exposes Green Hypocrisy."

CEE Underprepared: On June 26, Euronews published a piece expressing alarm for "central and eastern" European countries like Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Bulgaria, which "remain woefully unarmed" to deal with severe heat due to their building styles and lack of air conditioning.

Heat vs. Gun Deaths: Claims have floated around social media that European heat kills more people yearly than guns in America. An analysis from Fortune (Center) said the claim is "kind of" true. Author Catherina Gionio noted that while the figures did show this in 2024, the numbers are produced using "fundamentally different methods." Heat-related deaths are counted in the form of "excess deaths," meaning the deceased would have been expected to survive longer in cooler conditions.

Climate Change: German state media Deutsche Welle (Center) published several headlines associating the heat with climate change. Among them were:

• Climate change: Heat wave costs the German economy billions
• European heat wave is not normal summer weather
• Extreme heat: Can Europe adapt to climate change?

In a fact check article titled "Throwing cold water on heat disinformation," DW declared the "sentiment" that intense summer heat might not be associated with climate change as "false."

Cold Deaths: In a piece that highlighted rising heat mortality across Europe, Brussels Signal (Right) noted that cold-related deaths still "significantly outnumber" heat-related ones at a rate of 5 to 10 times higher.

Brussels Bureaucrats: The European Conservative and Brussels Signal highlighted a report from Politico (Lean Left) that the European Commission shut off the air conditioning for the first seven floors of its employees, while leaving it running for those above the eighth floor – where President Ursula von der Leyen and most of her staff work. Politico wrote in its headline that Brussels was "forced" to make the move, whereas Brussels Signal wrote, "European Commission only allows air conditioner for higher ups." The Daily Caller (Right) published a similar headline.

'Workplace Crisis': EUobserver (Lean Left) reported that the European Trade Union Institute has prepared a report arguing that extreme heat is a dangerous workplace condition that infringes on workers' rights.

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