Twitter Blocks Certain Climate Change Ads as “Misleading”

What can the misleading ads on Twitter be about? War in Ukraine? COVID-19? American elections? We seemingly forget about climate changes (where are you, Greta?) But there are still many speculations that generate fake news. Now, Twitter is going to address these ads and pay specific attention to them.

Which news does Twitter call “misleading”? According to the post on the official blog, “misleading” are the news that contradicts the scientific consensus on climate change. This consensus is, for example, expressed by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which is considered by Twitter to be enough of an authority.

While the fact of these changes per se is generally accepted, there are discussions about what caused them and what can be done about this. And while these discussions per se, again, are acceptable even when containing controversial opinions, monetizing scandalous headlines is not.

Twitter has it even more straight. “Climate denialism should not be monetized”, the company states. It’s not clear, though, whether these misleading ads will be reviewed when complained about, or whether there will be a sort of moderation for them.

The date couldn’t be more appropriate to make such an announcement. April 22 is Earth Day, the day that reminds us about ecology and environmental problems. Does it have anything to do with someone’s plans to purchase Twitter? Hardly is this the case, given how long Twitter has been concerned. In 2019, the company announced its plans to go carbon-neutral, and in 2022, Twitter joined the European Climate Pact which implies also transferring to renewable electricity.

What do you say? Have you ever felt like trusting some unofficial news, and did it turn out to be another conspiracy theory? And do these ads make your tapping finger itchy? Tell us what you see and feel in the comments!