In a letter written to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, the U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on the Climate Crisis expressed its concerns about “dangerous misinformation” about climate change being published on Google-owned platforms, including YouTube.
At least one study has found that a majority of YouTube videos on the platform about climate change oppose scientific consensus. This is while YouTube continues to serve ads from major brands on these videos, according to activist groups.
The letter suggests that Google should take action against these types of videos by demonetizing them, the same action it took against “anti-vaccination” videos last year, and also remove the videos from YouTube’s recommendation algorithm. The committee also suggests correcting the record for millions of users who have been exposed to climate misinformation from a YouTube video.
This comes after Kathy Castor, the chair of the committee, criticized the company last October for making political contributions to at least a dozen organizations that have campaigned against climate legislation. Google has defended contributions to those groups.
The committee has asked for Google to respond to the notice by February 7, with a plan of action.
In an announcement published last year, Google said “sustainability has been one of Google’s core values from our earliest days,” while committing to new investments in renewable energy.
Google has been reached for comment on the letter, but has yet to respond.
