"The New York Times, one of the biggest purveyors of fossil fuel ads, did not respond to our request for comment."

"In a major speech that didn’t mince words, the United Nations Secretary-General on Wednesday called fossil fuel companies the “godfathers of climate chaos,” and urged all countries to ban fossil fuel advertising.

António Guterres also called on PR firms, media outlets, and tech companies to stop promoting fossil fuel ads that lie to the public and hide the role the industry plays in the climate crisis.

“Many in the fossil fuel industry have shamelessly greenwashed even as they have sought to delay climate action,” Guterres said. "I urge news media and tech companies to stop taking fossil fuel advertising.”

Guterres compared ad agencies that create content for Big Oil to the morality-bereft executives from “Mad Men.” He said PR firms should “stop taking on new fossil fuel clients from today, and set out plans to drop your existing ones.”"

Arielle Samuelson and Emily Atkin report for HEATED June 5, 2024. [2]