Google will prohibit digital ads promoting false climate change claims

Google will prohibit digital ads promoting false climate change claims from appearing on other content. The measure, which could limit the reception of climate change deniers and stop the spread of misinformation, will also apply to YouTube. Last week, it announced extensive steps against misinformation about vaccines. The restrictions "will prohibit advertising for content and monetization of content that contradicts the established scientific consensus on the existence and causes of climate change," the company said on its blog on Thursday. Google said that in recent years, a growing number of its advertising partners and publishers have expressed "concern about ads that appear alongside (climate change content) or promote inaccurate claims about climate change." "Advertisers simply don't want their ads to appear alongside this content. "Publishers and authors on YouTube do not want ads promoting these claims to appear on their sites or in videos," the company explained. The new restrictions will apply to content that identifies climate change as a fabrication or denies greenhouse gas emissions and the contribution of human activity to long-term global warming. The policy will take effect in November, and according to Google, automated tools and employees will work to enforce it. This week, Google also introduced new features to help users reduce their carbon footprint, including a search feature that shows which flights have lower emissions.