Idk about fossil fuels but they been directly being sponsored by big companies and in return making propoganda for them for a few years now.
Comment on kurzgesagt – AI Slop Is Killing Our Channel
Blisterexe@lemmy.zip 5 months agoWhen did they shill for fossil fuel? Not saying it didn’t happen, just wondering
Jankatarch@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Gloomy@mander.xyz 5 months ago
As much as i regret linking to reddit here, i feel it is fair to also post the channels answer to the video.
nuko147@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I watch that channel for years and i had no idea. I post his answer over the channels answer. Although that is 3 years old, i wonder what is now happening.
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 5 months ago
They accepted, and continue to accept a great amount of money from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. That foundation owns over $11 billion in investments in the fossil fuel industry, including coal-burning utility companies.
In return, there were quite a few videos that Kurzgesagt admits were funded directly by the Foundation, that exaggerate the positive influence corporations owned by the foundation have had. Videos which the CEO of Kurzgesagt has admitted they probably would not have made if the Foundation had not paid for them.
JoshuaFalken@lemmy.world 5 months ago
It’s interesting how any false narrative starts with a granule of truth.
Kurzgesagt was indeed provided $570,000 in 2015. That money was paid out across the following four years.
They have not continued to accept any amount of money from the Gates foundation.
umbrella@lemmy.ml 5 months ago
JoshuaFalken@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Sorry, I didn’t think the word ‘continued’ would have needed underlining for anyone that could read what I wrote.
Using a piece of factual information to prop up false information within the same sentence is how false narratives take hold.
blakemiller@lemmy.world 5 months ago
That’s really embarrassing that we as a community have chosen, of all possible creators, to deride Kurzgesagt for taking money from The Gates Foundation. It’s 0.05% of their holdings. ZERO POINT ZERO FIVE. Which, by the way, is down from 6% in the past after public concern — yes, a whopping 6%. Scourge of the earth, locked out of heaven: The Gates Foundation. Those computer nerds strike again. And we choose to punish a great content contributor for that. Shameful display of purity politics.
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 5 months ago
I don’t care if it’s 80% or 0.8%. if you take money from billionaires to produce specific videos for them as propaganda, then that is shilling for them. there isn’t any way you can spin that to make it not true, but I’m sure you’ll do your very liberal best.
blakemiller@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I’m afraid the world will be moving on while you wait for perfection.
null@lemmy.nullspace.lol 5 months ago
It’s not we, just notorious loser, cryptagion.
blakemiller@lemmy.world 5 months ago
It’s important to have a coalition of support and so I won’t single anyone out, hence I used the word “we”. I have to assume others share their opinion about Kurz. But the larger point is that this is classic left infighting and, ironically, it stalls actual progress. Before we can be good at something, we have to be bad at something.
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 5 months ago
lol still salty, I see. that’s OK, boo-boo, I still love you.
uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 months ago
The problem is when the contributors influence what the videos say, in contradiction to data.
Kurzgesagt’s video on +2° / +3° / +4° over the global mean isn’t going to be so bad video was conspicuous to me, and is in fact, based on fossil-fuel industry rhetoric, rather than climatology estimations (which tell us over +1.5° is going to fuck us, and is).
blakemiller@lemmy.world 5 months ago
That’s a pretty dishonest take from that video honestly.
TheBat@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I’m trying to think of their ‘fossil fuel shilling’ video and only videos that come to mind are where they say we’re too entrenched in the fossil fuel industry to make a switch to renewable overnight. It’s just not realistic.
And other than fuel, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of products made from petroleum. Approximately 85% of petroleum is made into fuel. Rest is used to make things like pharma products, paint, pesticides, polymers etc.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 5 months ago
even people who needs to use petrolatum(aka protroleum) comes from it, for thier dry skin.
Ganbat@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 months ago
“A small loan of a million dollars.”
Does any of that matter in this situation, anyway? Exaggerating their content in exchange for money already places question on their reliability as an educational content creator.
TheBat@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I don’t think you understood what they’re saying. Try reading it again.
Hint: the investment of $11 billion refers to investment of Gates Foundation in fossil fuels.
Randomgal@lemmy.ca 5 months ago
Yeah. It seems like a ridiculous accusation to make. Bro couldn’t even answer the question about example of shilling so they had to pivot into the crime of taking money from a foundation to produce high quality educational content.
How dare they?
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 5 months ago
question answered. if you don’t want to accept the CEO of Kurzgesagt word that they would not have made the videos if they hadn’t bee paid to, then that isn’t my problem. I’m not here to convince you, and I don’t mind if you don’t believe him.