Activists from Extinction Rebellion launch a series of protests against GB News studios and Sir Paul Marshall’s hedge fund, criticising their links to the fossil fuel industry and accusing them of spreading climate misinformation.
Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists conducted protests targeting GB News studios in Paddington, West London, and its investor Sir Paul Marshall’s hedge fund offices, Marshall Wace, in central London. These demonstrations took place amid a broader series of global protests against new oil and gas extraction in the North Sea and fossil fuel investments.
The GB News protest involved activists throwing fake oil, spraying the building with purple and black paint, and setting off flares to draw attention to what they describe as the broadcaster’s dissemination of climate misinformation and its financial connections to the fossil fuel industry. Protesters accused GB News and Sir Paul Marshall of spreading climate doubt and confusion, labeling the channel a “puppet TV station” for fossil fuels and displaying placards that depicted GB News presenters and Sir Paul as “extremists.” A notable element of the protest saw an individual wearing a “dark face of money” mask perching atop a tripod at the scene.
Simultaneously, climate activists from countries including Scotland, Norway, and the Netherlands have rallied against new oil and gas explorations in the North Sea. These actions, coordinated by Extinction Rebellion Scotland under the banner of the North Sea Fossil Free campaign, targeted offices and facilities in Aberdeen, Lerwick Harbour, Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands. The protesters unveiled banners and demanded an end to practices they argue conflict with the goals of the Paris Agreement and exacerbate the global climate crisis.
Through these protests, Extinction Rebellion seeks to challenge the practices of media outlets like GB News, investment firms like Marshall Wace, and oil and gas operations in the North Sea, framing these activities as significant contributors to ecological and climate issues. GB News has not provided a comment regarding the protest staged outside its studios.
