CNBC interrupted its usual program today for a shocking bit of breaking news: the U.S. Chamber of Commerce had decided to stop opposing the Kerry-Boxer climate bill and instead “throw its weight behind strong climate legislation.”

What great news! Could it be true?

In this case, it wasn’t: the Chamber’s supposed about-face was concocted by the Yes Men, a clever group of activist pranksters whose new movie, “The Yes Men Fix the World,” hits theaters nationwide this week. By snookering numerous media agencies, the Yes Men managed to shift the public’s sense of the possible.

Mother Jones blogger Kate Sheppard — unlike CNBC and Reuters — sniffed out the prank pretty quickly:

Reporters received a press release early Monday stating that the Chamber would be “throwing its weight behind strong climate legislation” at an event at the National Press Club in downtown Washington, DC. But when I and others showed up, we were met by a fellow dressed in a suit looking like a typical corporate PR man. This wasn’t Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue. And I recognized him as Yes Man Andy Bichlbaum. (I’ve written about the group previously.) He soon was telling reporters, “We at the Chamber have tried to keep climate science from interfering with business. But without a stable climate, there will be no business.”

Sheppard’s blog post gives a good explanation about the event and how it unfolded, as well as some background info about the pranksters.

Like the Yes Men’s other capers, today’s trick forced everyone fooled by the impersonation to imagine, just for a moment, what would happen if corporations and their representatives were swayed by ethical imperatives rather than profit motives.

Here’s what I love about the Yes Men stunts: even after the real Chamber of Commerce guy shows up and blows the impostor’s cover, and even after CNBC issues its embarrassed correction and apology, a new sense of possibility remains in viewers’ minds. We just saw the fake Chamber of Commerce finally talk about ecological disaster. Even if the real Chamber’s still in climate denial, we all have a new sense about the possibility for change.

In a way, the Yes Men’s aim of making an ethically grounded society seem possible is not so different from Tikkun‘s attempts to inject a prophetic perspective into public debates. We just have different strategies.

The upcoming November/December issue of Tikkun contains a Q&A with Yes Men activists Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno. You can subscribe to receive the magazine in the mail, or visit the main Tikkun site to read the online version of the article starting on November 1. And don’t forget to check out the new Yes Men movie!