A May 2007 report by Greenpeace USA concludes that, in 2006, Exxon spent $2.1 million on 41 groups that are part of the climate change denial and disinformation campaign. The report says Exxon has now given $22 million to these groups since 1998.

ABC News posted a May 18 story—“Has Exxon Really Seen the Light on Global Warming?”—on the new Greenpeace USA report, ExxonMobil’s Continued Funding of Global Warming Denial Industry (Analysis by Greenpeace USA Research Department, May 2007).

From the Greenpeace USA web site

So. The day of reckoning has come – when we get to find out just how much of the climate change denial industry ExxonMobil is still paying for.

This is the company which, apparently, has been “misunderstood” on global warming and has said it has dropped its funding of the deniers. 

The ExxonSecrets people have gone through the documents, and found a clear answer:  last year Exxon spent $2.1 million last year on 41 groups who are leading the climate sceptic industry.

While the company has been forced to drop the hottest potato of them all, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) and another particularly vocal denier,  Steve “Junk Science” Milloy,  the rest of them are still on the payroll….

This company has now funded the climate change denial industry to the tune of $22 million since 1998.  Last year the UK’s prestigious scientific body, the Royal Society,  wrote to Exxon asking them to stop funding the groups who were “misinforming the public about the science of climate change”.  Exxon indicated to the Royal Society that they had – and they would. In February this year Exxon did a big public relations round of the media, saying it had been “misunderstood” on climate change and gave the clear indication that it had dropped its funding of the climate sceptic industry. 

“Exxon softens its stance on climate change” screamed the headlines.  But very little has changed, except Exxon’s PR machine.  It’s been business as usual at the Dallas HQ, no matter what they said in public.

Some of our earlier posts on the subject of ExxonMobil include:
(Sept. 23, 2006), “UK science academy letter tells ExxonMobil to stop funding global warming denial machine”
Sept. 23, 2006 “Royal Society letter to ExxonMobil: Exemplary citizen-science for public accountability”
(Nov. 23, 2006) “Michael MacCracken’s 2002 letter to the ExxonMobil board of directors”
(Dec. 8, 2006) “ExxonMobil CEO says global warming poses significant potential risks, emissions reductions needed”
(Jan. 22, 2007) “Exxon Mobil takes first steps to accept climate change science and cut funding of the denial machine”