Advertising is funding climate denial, we need to do something about it, now
With COP26 coming up, advertisers cannot afford to continue to be played by climate deniers, criminals, and the far-right.
This week, it’s been a pleasure to share my views on the inadvertent funding of climate denial by global advertisers.
First, my friends at New Digital Age and MAD Fest asked me to pitch at the 99Club, see the results here. In a nutshell, advertising funds the internet, and with that great power, comes a great responsibility. As an industry, we must look at where our ad spend is going, and get smarter to stop funding misinformation, and organised crime where we can.
And to all those rightly passionate free-speech advocates out there, you can say what you like online, within the laws of the land, but there’s no right to monetisation. Advertisers should also be free to choose who and what to fund.
Next up, The Drum asked for my comment on what ad land could do in the run up to COP26, and whether funding climate denial is a brand safety issue (spoiler YES, and a human safety issue) my response was:
“Not having a policy on climate misinformation makes it entirely possible that the system will be abused, and that advertising will fund targeted climate denial that can threaten global commitments on climate.”
For more on how advertising intersects with feminism, diversity, hate speech, and #BeKind, follow The Conscious Advertising Network on Twitter or LinkedIn, where my co-chair, Jake Dubbins and steering committee share our views.
Other great things on advertising’s role in the wider world this week:
Outvertising, GSK and CAN steering group member, Jerry Daykin on diversity and why it matters.
Jake Dubbins of The Conscious Advertising Network on ad funded bullying and why it matters that we #BeKind.
Nandini Jammi of Sleeping Giants on advertising blocklists and why they suck.
