Essay by Eric Worrall
Campaigners, I mean senators, are horrified that people don’t believe government climate warnings, and blame a conspiracy of big oil interests for this lack of trust in Green claims.
Australia has to fight back against misinformation about climate change, Senate report says
By business reporter Gareth Hutchens
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The Senate’s select committee on information integrity on climate change and energy released its final report last week.
It sounded an alarm about the health of Australia’s digital town square and the erosion of trust in society, and said we have to clean up our online debates. Climate disinformation, the Atlas Network and Dr Karl
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“A robust information ecosystem is critical to the health of Australia’s democracy and to its ability to meet the challenges arising from climate change — including the need to transition to renewable energy sources,” the report argued.
“However, the committee heard that the integrity of Australia’s information ecosystem is threatened by a proliferation of misinformation and disinformation, which is polarising public discourse and eroding trust in science and knowledge institutions.
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With that in mind, the report has recommended that the federal government explore ways to improve transparency of political campaign activities in Australia, such as the creation of third parties, that are resourced by commercial and corporate interests.
It says the government should explore funding models for independent monitoring support (for example, via the Australian Internet Observatory) to track hidden digital influence ecosystems and provide independent transparency and accountability of online platforms.
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Read more: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03-29/senate-report-misinformation-climate-change-recommendations/106497978
The final report is available here.
The section on bad actors follows the usual green playbook, citing Senator Sheldon Whitehouse’s inquiry into alleged big oil misinformation, and included a demand that big oil be held accountable for their deception;
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Denial, Disinformation, and Doublespeak: Big Oil’s Evolving Efforts to Avoid
Accountability for Climate Change
1.40 In April 2024, US Congressman Jamie Raskin and US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse released a joint staff report Denial, Disinformation, and Doublespeak: Big Oil’s Evolving Efforts to Avoid Accountability for Climate Change. The report was the result of a three-year investigation by Democratic Party staff in the US House Oversight and US Senate Budget Committee.
1.41 The report explores the efforts large fossil fuel companies—including ExxonMobil, Chevron Corporation and Shell—allegedly undertake to deceive the public and investors about the effect of fossil fuels on climate change and how they undermine efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
1.42 Key observations within the report include:
Fossil fuel companies have understood the effects of fossil fuels on the climate since at least the 1960s but have worked to undermine public understanding of this.
The campaign against climate action waged by these companies has evolved from outright denial of climate change to undermining action using a playbook of deception and disinformation.
The fossil fuel industry uses intermediaries like trade associations and thinktanks to spread false and misleading narratives against climate action.
The industry strategically partners with universities to lend credibility to its deception campaigns while silencing or attacking opposing voices.
1.43 The report did not make recommendations, but noted that the investigation and report had ‘set out new evidence about the extent of the fossil fuel industry’s evolving efforts to avoid accountability for climate change’ and concluded that it was ‘long past time to hold Big Oil accountable for its deception campaign and to take action to undo the harms it has perpetrated‘
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Read more: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/committees/reportsen/RB000675/toc_pdf/TheIntegrityGapRestoringTrustintheClimateandEnergyDebate.pdf
The report contained a complaint that disinformation had turned people against wind turbines;
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1.46 The report found that bad faith actors had weaponised mis/disinformation to exacerbate community concerns and resistance to offshore wind. In particular, mis/disinformation about the effect of wind turbines on ocean life was said to have circulated through posts on social media platforms, thus amplifying community opposition and creating polarisation. The report highlighted links between this mis/disinformation and fossil fuel companies.
1.47 Recommendation four of the report states that ‘the Australian Government and DCCEEW [the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water] [should] proactively ensure that foreign actors, spam engagement, and misinformation and disinformation do not overpower local community voices from being heard in local public debate’
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Read more: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/committees/reportsen/RB000675/toc_pdf/TheIntegrityGapRestoringTrustintheClimateandEnergyDebate.pdf
The committee provided the following recommendations. Naturally they are mostly about handing out money to leftist causes;
List of recommendations
9.23 The committee recommends the Australian Government support and adopt the United Nations Global Principles on Information Integrity and work to coordinate the application of these principles across government.
9.26 The committee recommends the Australian Government officially endorse the Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change launched at COP30 in Belem, Brazil.
9.33 The committee recommends the Australian Government ensure the adequacy of resourcing for regulators such as Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to combat and expose corporate greenwashing.
9.34 The committee recommends the Australian Government explore ways to ensure greater transparency of campaign activities, such as the creation of third parties, that are resourced by commercial/corporate interests in the lead up to a federal election.
9.40 The committee recommends the Australian Government continue to provide funding support for regional and independent media outlets.
9.41 The committee recommends the Australian Government increase funding for social sciences research relating to threats to climate and energy information integrity including potential solutions.
9.42 The committee recommends the Australian Government explore funding models for independent monitoring support (for example, via the Australian Internet Observatory) to track hidden digital influence ecosystems and provide independent transparency and accountability of platforms.
9.45 The committee recommends the Australian Government, through the regular Education Ministers’ Meeting curriculum review cycle, broaden the Australian Curriculum ‘digital literacy’ general capability to strengthen media literacy.
9.46 The committee recommends the upcoming National Media Literacy Strategy incorporate the information integrity framework with examples from the climate and energy domain.
9.47 The committee recommends the Australian Government, coordinated through the Education Ministers’ Meeting, establish stronger oversight and disclosure requirements for corporate engagement within school systems, with clear policies regulating philanthropic or corporate relationships that may interfere with educational integrity.
9.55 The committee recommends the Australian Government consider legislative or regulatory reform which identifies psychosocial harms, places the onus of responsibility in addressing these harms onto digital platforms and monitors effectiveness of their mitigations through regulatory and civic oversight.
9.56 The committee recommends the Australian Government improve the quality of data reported to the Australian Communications and Media Authority from the digital platforms to include for example, thematic breakdown of their reporting inclusive of climate and energy data, denominator data, removal actions and paid advertising related to climate and energy.
9.57 The committee recommends that the Australian Government consider how researchers could be provided adequate legal protection to undertake their work in the digital platform space.
9.58 The committee recommends the Australian Government consider how to improve the complaints resolution process, including about false and misleading information online.
9.64 The committee recommends the Australian Government ensure the Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner is adequately funded for community engagement.
9.65 The committee recommends the Australian Government require the Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner to provide a summary of threats to climate and energy information integrity in their annual report.
9.66 The committee recommends that the Australian Renewable Energy Agency and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation consider social licence on renewable energy projects. This could include:
hiring new staff with expertise in social science, behavioural science, and community engagement, and;
ensuring their decision making and advisory bodies have social licence expertise represented.
9.67 The committee recommends that the Australian Government task the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation to provide advice on the costs and benefits of renewable energy creation, storage and transmission alongside clean manufacturing to create data needed to address local social licence concerns.
9.68 The committee recommends the National Health and Medical Research Council fund new research on the effects of wind energy on human health.
9.69 The committee recommends the Australian Government continue to strengthen communication and social licence capability across government agencies and departments. Improved information flow between jurisdictions and across departments will help address knowledge fragmentations across multiple sectors of the economy (e.g. transport, electricity, agriculture, emergency services).
9.70 The committee recommends the Australian Government resource community led engagement driven by organisations with proven track records in local communities. These models may include capacity building for local leaders in rural and regional areas, support for local governments that are contingent on their engagement with community organisations or groups with a proven track record.
Read more: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Information_Integrity_on_Climate_Change_and_Energy/ClimateIntegrity/Report/List_of_recommendations
The worst part of this sad green senate kabuki performance, Australia desperately needs fossil fuel investment, to rebuild our extraction and refinery capacity. Back in the 1970s Australia produced 98% of its own fuel – we could have laughed off the Iran war oil crisis. But with today’s diminished refinery capacity, thanks to decades of political hostility towards fossil fuel, there is a very real risk the Australian economy could grind to a halt.
The greens throwing their weight around in the senate and demanding fossil fuel companies be held accountable has confirmed Australia’s status as uninvestable.
