Sustainability

Turning Agencies Against Fossil Fuel Brands Harkens Back to the Tobacco Wars

But activists and climate-focused marketers say the ad world is a long way from breaking with Big Oil

illustration of shell and exxon logos in smoke from a discarded smoking cigarette — Activists want to create the same taboo around fossil fuels in advertising that exists for tobacco. Kacy Burdette

October 25, 2021

Adweek's annual #Brandweek summit will explore the ideas behind breakthrough successes, discuss solutions to pressing challenges and explore new opportunities in the Metaverse. Join leaders from Alo Yoga, Hyundai Motor America, Frito-Lay and more, Sept. 12–16 in Miami. Sign up early to save.

When Lucy Glaser was interviewing for an early-career position at a well-known ad agency in Chicago in the mid-2010s, one of the first questions the interviewer asked her was this: “Would you consider working on a tobacco account?”