Twitter bans climate change ads that are misleading and promote climate denialism

Twitter bans climate change advertisements on its platform that are misleading. The decision was taken on April 22, which is celebrated as Earth Day.

On Earth Day, Twitter bans ads around climate change which are not supported by scientific consensus. The platform stated that climate denialism should not be monetized. (REUTERS)

Twitter bans unscientific climate change ads: On April 22, popularly known as Earth Day, Twitter decided to ban any ads running on the platform that did not have a scientific consensus when discussing topics around climate change. The micro-blogging platform released a press note highlighting both the reasons behind this decision as well as Twitter's sustainability approach and how it is constantly making changes to reduce its carbon footprint. According to the company, the decision was taken in light of the alarming report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which stated that greenhouse gas emissions need to be halved by 2030 or a catastrophe will await us.

“Now more than ever, meaningful climate action, from all of us, is critical” Twitter stated in its blog post. It also highlighted the need for ‘hubs of credible, authoritative information' around climate change. “To better serve these conversations, misleading advertisements on Twitter that contradict the scientific consensus on climate change are prohibited, in line with our inappropriate content policy. We believe that climate denialism shouldn't be monetized on Twitter, and that misrepresentative ads shouldn't detract from important conversations about the climate crisis”, the post added.

Twitter bans climate change ads that mislead

Twitter acknowledged the destructive role of misleading information on climate change and how it can detract the conversation away from any meaningful change. This is not a one-off decision for the company either. The micro-blogging platform has been involved in taking an environmentally sustainable approach in running its operations as well. In the same blog post, it stated that it is now reaching close to its plans of achieving 100% carbon-neutral power sourcing in all its data centers. Twitter claimed that all of its data centers are now powered by solar and wind power projects in the same geographic region and all the centers have Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).

Apart from Twitter bans on misleading ads, the company also highlighted the other initiatives it has taken towards becoming environment friendly. “Earlier this year, we joined the EU climate pact, committing to ambitious North Star and Pathway pledges, in line with Paris Agreement goals. We're committed to transitioning to renewable electricity in all our EU leased operations; using 100% carbon-neutral energy in our directly leased buildings by 2025; and upping our investments in carbon removal technologies”. It also shared its vision for 2030 stating that it wants to complete its net-zero journey by then.