Edelman Is 'Still Refusing to Look Up' on Climate Change

In Adam McKay's 2021 apocalyptic film Don't Look Up, public relations firms aren't part of the story that plays out on screen. As a planet-killing asteroid hurtles toward Earth, scientists, journalists, politicians, pundits, conspiracy theorists and celebrities are all satirized by a star-studded cast including Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Ariana Grande. The asteroid is a metaphor for climate change, of course. And if the fictional crisis is anything like the current real-life cataclysm that inspired it, then PR firms were surely part of the comedy/disaster movie, too—albeit shaping the terms of the debate behind the scenes. A peer-reviewed study conducted at Brown University, published last month, showed what an instrumental role PR firms have played in forming and obstructing the U.S. policy response to climate change. Edelman was particularly singled out. The world's largest PR firm had more connections to players within the climate policy sphere than any other agency in the study due to its specific focus on serving fossil fuel companies. Just last week, the firm chose to keep working with fossil fuel clients even as it unveiled plans to "take a leadership position in our industry on the climate crisis," as CEO Richard Edelman wrote in a blog post. With this new strategy, the firm said it could help its clients do a better job communicating and acting on climate issues. After a 60-Day Review of Its Roster, Edelman Is Sticking With Polluters—For Now 'Face-saving greenwash' Michael Mann, the climate scientist who inspired DiCaprio's role in Don't Look Up, told Adweek that ending its work with fossil fuel clients is "a must" if Edelman wants to prove that the declaration is more than "face-saving greenwash." Mann's 2021 book, The New Climate War, goes into detail about the "decades of climate disinformation promoted by fossil fuel industry PR firms including Edelman," he said. It's part of a growing body of research tying the PR industry to U.S. environmental politics. Ben Franta, a researcher who studies climate misinformation at Stanford, called Edelman's plan to help fossil fuel clients do better on climate "wishful thinking." Franta, who's pursing a PhD and law degree, said this tactic has been tried before by climate scientists hoping to push oil companies to a better position on climate from the inside. "Obviously, that has not worked," Franta said. "These companies—we know because of historical documents—they have understood the climate issue very deeply in a very sophisticated way, for many decades." He continued: "They're not going to have a phone call with Richard and then change their 40-year plan." Rather, oil companies are going to lean on their PR firms to do exactly what they are best at: improving their brand image through strategic communications. 'They're still refusing to look up' Don't Look Up, which started streaming on Netflix on Dec. 24, painted a bleak image of humanity's response to the risk of its own demise. In order for the world's climate response to be any better, large-scale changes are necessary from the biggest players in every industry. "While the film is obviously a caricature of the climate crisis, it does vividly convey the basic fact that climate change is an existential threat," Mann said. "It requires a fundamental and rapid shift away from fossil fuels, and there’s nothing in the Edelman’s latest statements that demonstrates that they recognize that." "In the language of the film," he added, "they’re still refusing to look up." Platforms Foment Climate Misinformation, Creating a Thorny Landscape for Brands

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Kathryn Lundstrom

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Kathryn Lundstrom