The backlash against data centers is spreading across the country, and angry confrontations at local government meetings are increasingly becoming part of the national story.

But anger isn’t evidence. In Alabama, communities should evaluate data center projects based on what actually makes sense for their individual economic and infrastructure needs, not because somebody saw a scary television segment or an angry guy at a county commission meeting.

Some communities may legitimately determine that a particular data center isn’t the best use of available power, land, or infrastructure.

Others, particularly areas desperately seeking new investment and tax revenue, may reach the exact opposite conclusion. That’s the conversation worth having.

Instead, we’re increasingly hearing sweeping claims that data centers will consume America’s farmland, send grocery prices soaring, and destroy communities, followed by “do your own research” when anyone asks for evidence.

That’s not research. It’s another moral panic, and Alabama shouldn’t make major economic-development decisions based on whoever screams the loudest at a public meeting.