Big Tech drags feet on climate disinformation, advocates warn

Plumes of smoke rise as wildfire approaches a home during the Fairview Fire near Hemet, California, in Riverside County on Sept 7, 2022. In June, the wildfire smoke wafting from Canada to locations as far away as New York prompted a surge in the number of posts using the term ‘climate scam’, according to the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a non-profit group. — AFP

NEW YORK: Global tech giants are falling short on pledges to rein in and combat climate misinformation on their platforms, according to a new report calling for more political will to act on measures to curb the “spread of lies” that threaten climate action.

Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD), a coalition of more than 50 advocacy groups and businesses, released the report on Wednesday as activists and business leaders joined Climate Week NYC, an event held alongside the UN General Assembly each year, and leaders laid out green plans at the UN chief’s Climate Ambition Summit.