It’s Not Just Oil Giants. Their Favourite PR Firms Are in Baku, Too.

"Fossil-friendly communications companies are represented on some national delegations to the climate talks, DeSmog analysis finds."

"More than 1,700 oil, gas and coal lobbyists are registered attendees of this year’s international climate summit, currently underway in Baku, Azerbaijan, to try to persuade the world that the fossil fuel industry can be part of the climate solution.

The PR companies that help them sell that message are not far behind.

Dozens of the consultants registered for the two-week conference, called COP29, come from 10 public relations agencies that work with oil giants such as Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, and Shell. The agencies include Edelman, Dentsu, FleishmanHillard, and Burson, according to a DeSmog review of the official delegates list, as well as reports by the PR industry trade press.

Staff from seven of these agencies registered with delegations from countries taking part in the negotiations, including Japan, Brazil, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, as well as the United Arab Emirates, which hosted the last round of the annual negotiations.

Governments often hire PR teams to create content, provide media training, and handle press at high level conferences."

TJ Jordan reports for DeSmog November 20, 2024.

Source: DeSmog, 11/22/2024