The LA Times writer is facing a furious backlash after claiming wealthy white drivers are ‘polluting the air’ that the city’s black and Latino populations breathe.
- Newspaper sparks backlash with article claiming pollution in Los Angeles disproportionately affects its African-American and Latino populations
- Writer Sammy Roth cited a study that claimed the city’s freeway planning was “racially motivated”
- Readers criticized the article as “idiotic”, while Twitter issued a warning of inaccuracy, though it was later retracted.
A writer for the LA Times is facing a furious backlash after claiming that white drivers are ‘polluting the air’ that black and Latino citizens breathe.
Sammy Roth cited a study calling the city’s freeway planning “racially motivated” since it means whites living in suburban Los Angeles drive through various neighborhoods every day on their way to work.
But Roth’s article has been criticized as “idiotic” on social media, with Twitter placing an inaccuracy warning on it before later removing it.
In his paper, the writer referred to a report from the University of Southern California that found that Los Angeles residents “who drive more tend to be exposed to less air pollution, and Angelenos who drive less tend to be exposed to less air pollution.” to more pollution”.
The study, “Local Inequities in Relative Production and Exposure to Vehicular Air Pollution in Los Angeles,” was authored by Professor Geoff Boeing, with whom Roth spoke.
Sammy Roth, Energy and Environment reporter for the LA Times, has come under fire for an article claiming that white drivers are “polluting the air” for black and Latino citizens.
LA is the most polluted city in the US, according to an IQair study in 2021. The city is shown in March 2020
“He told me that in large part it’s because of the shameful history of low-income communities of color in Los Angeles County being bulldozed to make way for freeways, a history that has been extensively documented by The Times,” Roth, who is the newspaper Energy. and environment reporter said.
“Today, many residents of the county’s whitest and wealthiest neighborhoods, who were often able to keep the roads out of their own backyards, commute to work through low-income Black and Latino neighborhoods bisected by the 10, 110 and 105 and up. ‘
The university’s report was published in the peer-reviewed journal Urban Studies in January of this year.
Their summary reads: “Decades of highway infrastructure planning and racial residential segregation shape today’s disparities in who produces vehicular air pollution and who is exposed to it, but opportunities exist for urban planning and policy of transport mitigate this injustice”.
Twitter placed a disclaimer on the piece that read: ‘This claim is false.
“This assumption is based on research that those who drive tend to be exposed to less air pollution, while those who drive less tend to be exposed to more pollution.”
He also noted that the article had distorted the diversity ratios for Los Angeles, as its population is 48.4 percent Hispanic/Latino and 28.1 percent white only.
The warning was later retracted, but Roth’s piece sparked fury among users of the social networking site.
Nick Short, director of communications for the Claremont Institute, wrote: ‘Kudos to the author of this article @Sammy_Roth. You have managed to write not only the most idiotic but also the most racist piece of 2023!
Roth cited a study written by University of Southern California professor Geoff Boeing
The United States was ranked as the 90th most polluted country in the world in 2021
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The United States was ranked the 90th most polluted country in the world in a 2021 study by IQAir. Bangladesh, Chad, Pakistan, Tajikistan and India are in the top five.
The study also showed that Los Angeles was the most polluted city in the US.