“They found the missing link. Darwin’s theory is now confirmed. There is no longer good reason to doubt that evolution is true.” Once again, the national media is focused on an ancient fossil find that allegedly confirms Darwin’s theory of evolution beyond a reasonable doubt. Stories about this find have been on the Drudge Report, ABC News, CNN and every other major news program. Mayor Bloomberg dubbed the find an “astonishing breakthrough.” Even Google changed their logo to match the fossil.

The creature was first found in 1983 in Germany and has been dubbed “Ida.” The fossil is remarkably preserved and is dated to 47 million years ago. It is about the size of a cat, has four legs, and has a long tail. Many scientists are heralding it as a clue that will help reveal mysteries surrounding puzzles of early evolution. The story of the fossil find will be shown on History, which is owned by A&E Television Networks. A book is planned as well.

Yet despite all the brouhaha, it seems that today’s reports are demonstrating that the claims are overblown. The Associated Press report admits that no one is even claiming that it’s a direct ancestor of monkeys and humans.

At the Uncommon Descent blog, author Denyse O’Leary shows how the fossil find actually complicates the “fact” of human evolution, rather than helping it: “The theory that was gaining ground was that humans were descended from tarsier-like creatures, but this fossil, touted as a primate ancestor, is a lemur-like creature. Often, I hear from people attempting to patch the cracks in the unguided Darwinian evolution theory, as follows: ‘We have more information than ever!’ Yes, but what if it is - as in this case - the evidence is contradictory?”

K. Christopher Beard of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, an expert not connected with the discovery, said, “I actually don’t think it’s terribly close to the common ancestral line of monkeys, apes, and people. I would say it’s about as far away as you can get from that line and still be a primate.” John Fleagle of the State University of New York at Stony Brook said the scientists' analysis provides only "a pretty weak link" between the new creature and higher primates, called anthropoids, which includes monkeys and man.
While this fossil will ultimately reveal very little (or nothing at all) about early primate evolution, it does reveal quite a bit about Americas fascination with Darwinism. As William Dembski and I write in Understanding Intelligent Design, the modern media is almost universally committed to Darwinism. The brouhaha surrounding this fossil find is interesting, revealing, and even entertaining. Too bad it’s driven more by ideology than fact.