I'm taking a mooc on climate change denial 1, and creating confusion is listed as one of the main reasons for denial. For example, when faced with scientific consensus about tobacco causing cancer, the industry invested a lot in creating doubt - doubt makes change stop or slow down.

Personal biases are also a big factor. Eg: a conservative is more prone to believe global warming when presented an article about "free market solutions with nuclear power" than "government legislation against co2", which are just different takes on the same underlying truth.

1 https://courses.edx.org/courses/course-v1:UQx+Denial101x+1T2...