Event | Off the Record: How to Talk to Journalists, Lawyers, and Activist Organizations

Join a May 19 discussion on how advertising and PR professionals can help journalists hold the industry to account, featuring DeSmog investigative reporters.
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Join this free online event on how PR professionals can hold the industry to account, featuring DeSmog reporters TJ Jordan and Ellen Ormesher.

Hosted by Clean Creatives and Climate Whistleblowers

Tuesday, May 19 12:00 p.m. EDT

Feeling frustrated with where the advertising and PR industry is at? Uncomfortable with conflict between your agencyโ€™s internal guidelines on climate and human rights and the polluting clients your agency is holding on to? Want to make change, but not sure where to start?

โ€‹Your insider knowledge is a super power.

โ€‹You might have privileged information that is in the public interest, concrete facts that can help hold people accountable. Investigative journalists are working to uncover systemic problems in the PR and advertising industry and write stories that could bring about change.

โ€‹Last month, six employees from WPP agencies provided information that helped the Guardian and investigative outlet DeSmog reveal that WPP was breaching company policy by helping oil giants like ExxonMobil spend billions on misleading advertising. You donโ€™t have to have a stash of secret documents โ€” your own experiences could provide crucial insight for a journalist.

There is no single way to speak up. Whistleblowing can take many forms, from sharing information anonymously, to speaking out openly and publicly. Understanding your options is key to making informed, safe decisions that will have an impact.

โ€‹โ€‹In this unique event, hear from DeSmog investigative journalists and communications professionals who have spoken with them, on:

  • โ€‹How and when to make contact with journalists
  • โ€‹Deciphering the lingo (whatย doesย โ€œon the recordโ€ mean anyway?)
  • โ€‹How to stay safe and know your rights
  • โ€‹What journalists are looking for
  • โ€‹The different ways to disclose information

โ€‹Have any questions about the event? Feel free to get in touch with us at [email protected] or on Signal @LRanzatoCC.79

โ€‹Joining anonymously

โ€‹While registration here requires your name and email (so we can send you the link to join), the event will be hosted securely on Zoom where your attendance is anonymized, participant cameras will be off, and you will be able to edit and remove your participant name in the waiting room before joining. No one else on the call will be able to see you are watching. Here are additional steps you can take to join the Zoom meeting anonymously. If there are additional steps we can take to reduce your risk, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

โ€‹Special guests

โ€‹TJ Jordan is an investigative reporter who focuses on greenwashing and climate action delay strategies. His investigations about ad and PR agencies have been published in outlets including The Guardian and The Financial Times, and he was named Emerging Journalist of the Year at the 2025 Covering Climate Now awards. He joined DeSmog in the summer of 2023 after five years working in the advertising and marketing industry.

โ€‹Ellen Ormesher is an investigative reporter and researcher, whose work at DeSmog exposes how the advertising and PR industries protect and promote some of the worldโ€™s biggest polluters. She is also completing postgraduate research on justice in environmental governance at the University of Edinburgh. Her reporting has appeared in outlets including The Guardian, and she was named Young Environment Reporter of the Year at the 2026 Chartered Institute of Journalists awards. She joined DeSmog in 2024 after two years as a Senior Reporter at The Drum, where she led coverage of ESG and greenwashing in the marketing industry.

โ€‹About the hosts

โ€‹Clean Creatives is a global campaign group building a movement of advertising and PR professionals cutting ties with fossil fuel companies. Through research, tools, and a network of over 1,500 pledged agencies, Clean Creatives works to end fossil fuel influence in the communications industry.

โ€‹Climate Whistleblowersย is a Paris-based NGO dedicated to protecting individuals who expose wrongdoings that worsen the climate crisis. They provide legal defense, media assistance, and security support to whistleblowers โ€” and work with investigative journalists to ensure disclosures have real impact.

Join in on Tuesday, May 19, at 12:00 p.m. EDT for this virtual conversation on how to bring about change in the PR industry.

You wonโ€™t want to miss it.

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