U.S. Ad Giant Poised to Become Global Leader in Promoting Fossil Fuels, Report Finds
New York-based communications company Omnicom’s acquisition of rival IPG will create a new global leader in fossil fuel advertising, overtaking London-based WPP for the first time, according to a new report. Under the $13.7 billion deal, announced in late 2024, the merged entity’s subsidiary agencies will hold a total of 120 fossil fuel contracts, the […]
Meta Put a Climate Change Denier in Charge of Fighting AI Bias
A conservative political activist recently appointed to be Meta’s new artificial intelligence anti-bias advisor is a well-known climate change denier, DeSmog has learned. Robby Starbuck — best known for opposing corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, particularly among brands popular with conservatives — has a track record of denying the science of climate change. These […]
‘Consistently Superb’: DeSmog Wins Two Covering Climate Now Awards
DeSmog has won two awards for its work exposing the role of the advertising and public relations industry in delaying climate action at the 2025 Covering Climate Now Journalism Awards. Investigative reporter TJ Jordan was named an Emerging Journalist of the Year for coverage including his story revealing how a British-owned PR firm hired social […]
Pro-Trump Climate Denial Group Meets With Far-Right European Politicians in Florida
Members of the European Parliament flew 5,000 miles to Florida this summer to meet with the head of a U.S. climate denial group, DeSmog can reveal. Freedom Party of Austria’s Harald Vilimsky and Alternative for Germany (AfD) MEP Markus Buchheit, vocal critics of EU climate policy in their respective far-right parties, met with James Taylor, […]
Revealed: ‘Chilling’ Surveillance of Activists by Meat and Dairy Industry
The U.S. meat industry has engaged in intrusive surveillance of animal rights groups, including monitoring relationships between activists and tracking employees of leading charities. The industry-funded Animal Agriculture Alliance (AAA) shared information with livestock companies about the romantic partners and even biological ties of those in animal rights organisations. Documents seen by DeSmog show that […]
Trump Ambassador’s Fortune Intertwined With Big Tech Trade Push
President Donald Trump’s UK ambassador holds investments in the companies set to develop flagship tech projects across the country. U.S. financial records show that Warren Stephens’ family-owned investment firm owns shares worth at least $800 million in tech companies, including $169 million in Microsoft, $118 million in Nvidia, and $114 million in Alphabet (Google’s parent […]
Developers Push Huge Server Farm in Another Rural Georgia County
A county in rural Georgia is due to hold a crucial vote on a proposal to build one of the world’s largest and most power-hungry data centers on Thursday, just a few weeks after the plans were made public. The five commissioners in Twiggs County will meet to consider an application submitted last month by […]
What ‘Chimney Sweep Testicle’ Can Teach Us About Fossil Fuels’ Staggering Health Consequences
Of the many health impacts linked to fossil fuels perhaps the most gruesome is chimney sweep testicle. Following the Great Fire of London in 1666, chimneys were required by law to be regularly cleaned to avoid another catastrophic conflagration. Coal was the common fuel in the 1700s and boys as young as four years old were forced to […]
Revealed: EPP-Linked Tax Group ‘Collaborated’ With Far-Right Party on Criminal Complaints
A taxpayers group with close ties to the European People’s Party (EPP) coordinated with Austria’s far-right in the latest escalation of the NGO funding debate, DeSmog can reveal. The Taxpayers Association of Europe (TAE) filed a criminal complaint with the EU’s top prosecutor on July 23, alleging that two former commissioners behind the EU Green Deal — Frans Timmermans […]
‘Don’t Patronize Us’: Data Center Charm Offensive Irks Opponents in Rural Georgia
On a Thursday morning in late August, Georgia country music radio station The Bear 92.5 FM awarded a 10-minute spot to a special guest. Phoning in to the Half & Half Morning Show was J.C. Witt, an executive of San Francisco-based Prologis (NYSE:PLD), the world’s largest industrial real estate company. Prologis wants to build “Project Sail” — […]
