YOUTUBE’S CLIMATE DENIAL DOLLARS

The report by the Center for Countering Digital Hate and the Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD) coalition finds that YouTube continues to monetize climate disinformation. Researchers identified 200 videos with 73.8 million views as of April 17, 2023, that carried ads. This includes 100 videos that explicitly breach YouTube's policy against content "contradicting authoritative scientific consensus on the existence of and causes behind climate change", amassing 18.8 million views. An additional 100 videos, which fit the broader CAAD definition of climate disinformation (including "discourses of delay"), amassed 55 million views. The report notes that major brands like Nike, Hyundai, and Costco have appeared in these ads. Furthermore, the report claims Google has failed to keep similar promises across other platforms, noting that 63% of popular climate denial articles still carry Google ads. The authors recommend that Google proactively enforce its policies and adopt the comprehensive CAAD definition of climate disinformation.

• Researchers identified 200 YouTube videos containing climate misinformation and disinformation that had a total of 73.8 million views as of April 17th, 2023, all of which featured advertisements.
• YouTube is failing to enforce its own policy prohibiting ads on content that contradicts scientific consensus on climate change; 100 videos breaching this policy were found to have carried ads and reached 18.8 million views.
• Beyond outright denial, YouTube profits from a broader range of climate disinformation—such as 'discourses of delay' or false solutions—that falls outside its narrow policy definitions. 100 such videos amassed 55 million views and featured ads from brands including Nike, Hyundai, and Emirates.
• The report identifies a pattern of Google failing to uphold promises regarding climate denial monetization across different services, including Google Search and third-party articles.
• Analysis of website code suggests that YouTube shares ad revenue with the creators of climate denial content, with 158 of the analyzed videos appearing to be part of this revenue-sharing arrangement.

APA

Climate Action Against Disinformation (n.d.). YOUTUBE’S CLIMATE DENIAL DOLLARS. https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/YouTubes-Climate-Denial-Dollars.pdf

Chicago

Climate Action Against Disinformation. YOUTUBE’S CLIMATE DENIAL DOLLARS. n.d. https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/YouTubes-Climate-Denial-Dollars.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Action Against Disinformation |title=YOUTUBE’S CLIMATE DENIAL DOLLARS |url=https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/YouTubes-Climate-Denial-Dollars.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateactionagainstdisinformationndyoutubes, author = {{Climate Action Against Disinformation}}, title = {{YOUTUBE’S CLIMATE DENIAL DOLLARS}}, institution = {Climate Action Against Disinformation}, url = {https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/YouTubes-Climate-Denial-Dollars.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }