Big Oil Companies Have Moved Away From Greenwashing. Climate Advocates Say What They’re Doing Now Is Worse

‘You can’t live without us’: How Big Oil pivoted from climate-friendly messaging to normalize dependence on fossil fuels

More than 1,500 independent advertising agencies and 4,000 individual creatives have signed Clean Creatives’ pledge to refuse future fossil fuel contracts.

Big Oil companies have moved away from greenwashing. Climate advocates say what they’re doing now is worse

Back in 2020, advertisements from Big Oil companies were focused on climate actions, like touting renewable energy investments or emphasizing sustainability pledges.  But now, those companies seem to have shifted away from the climate and back toward normalizing fossil fuel dependence, a new report notes.  Clean Creatives, an advocacy group that works to get PR and ad professionals to give up their fossil fuel clients, outlined the trajectory of…

Big Oil has moved on from 'greenwashing.' Here's the new playbook.

Remember when the fossil fuel industry couldn’t stop talking about climate change? In 2020, when oil prices plunged in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Big Oil promoted efforts to cut carbon emissions and trumpeted various energy “innovations”: transforming algae into fuel (Exxon Mobil), capturing carbon (Chevron), and producing green hydrogen (BP). Critics deemed it “greenwashing” — highlighting small sustainable investments to distract peopl…

'You Can’t Live Without Us': How Big Oil Pivoted from Climate-friendly Messaging to Normalise Dependence on Fossil Fuels

Four of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies have spent the last four years systematically shifting away from climate-friendly advertising to push a new message: fossil fuels are here to stay, a report has found.  Campaign group Clean Creatives analysed 1,859 communications from BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, and Chevron published between 2020 and 2024, spanning paid advertisements on Facebook, YouTube, […]

Big Oil has moved on from ‘greenwashing.’ Here’s the new playbook.

Remember when the fossil fuel industry couldn't stop talking about climate change? In 2020, when oil prices plunged in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Big Oil promoted efforts to cut carbon emissions and trumpeted various energy "innovations": transforming algae into fuel (Exxon Mobil), capturing carbon (Chevron), and producing green hydrogen (BP). Critics deemed it "greenwashing" - highlighting small sustainable investments to distract peopl…

Oil majors shifting from greenwashing to fossil fuel advocacy, adverti

Companies that once competed to look green are now competing to make fossil fuel dependence look reasonable, a study of nearly 2,000 oil and gas advertisements finds.