Spain is stepping up efforts to protect the public from climate-related disinformation, announcing plans to tighten accountability for digital platforms in the wake of recent emergencies that exposed the rapid spread of false claims online.
The move follows the European Union’s endorsement of the UN Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change and builds on enforcement measures under the bloc’s landmark Digital Services Act. Advocates say Spain’s initiative marks a turning point in how governments address the growing intersection of climate policy, public safety and online misinformation.
The announcement was highlighted in an update by Climate Action Against Disinformation, whose co-authors Dana Schran and Philip Newell argue that climate disinformation is not accidental but systematically amplified for profit.
Momentum for reform intensified after a 10-hour power outage across the Iberian Peninsula on April 28, 2025. In its aftermath, social media platforms were flooded with misleading claims about renewable energy echoing narratives that circulated during the 2021 Texas blackout, when frozen fossil fuel infrastructure was falsely blamed on clean energy sources.
Researchers and advocates warn that such disinformation campaigns are often driven by coordinated public relations efforts and boosted by platform algorithms designed to reward engagement. Outrage and falsehoods, they argue, generate advertising revenue while undermining trust in institutions, science and democratic processes.
Polling conducted by the Climate Action Against Disinformation coalition found that while many Spaniards encountered false claims following the blackout, a majority supported stronger measures to hold technology companies accountable.
Spain proposed reforms would go beyond content moderation, placing legal responsibility on platform executives and criminalizing the algorithmic amplification of illegal content. The measures also include monitoring polarization trends and strengthening protections for minors online.
Supporters describe the approach as a shift from reactive moderation to systemic accountability targeting the structural incentives that allow disinformation to flourish.
At the European level, regulators have already begun enforcing obligations under the Digital Services Act, including imposing penalties on major social media companies for governance failures. The EU’s endorsement of the UN climate information integrity declaration further signals a coordinated effort to defend science-based communication.
The UN Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change frames the climate crisis not only as an environmental emergency but also as an information challenge. Signatories commit to supporting independent journalism, increasing transparency and countering disinformation that undermines public understanding of climate science.
With the EU backing the declaration, advocates say regulatory tools and international frameworks are now aligned to establish global standards for digital accountability.
Beyond platform regulation, some European cities are targeting climate-related advertising. Municipalities including The Hague, Amsterdam and Florence have introduced restrictions on fossil fuel advertising, drawing comparisons to past tobacco advertising bans aimed at protecting public health.
Campaigners argue that such measures help shield the public from misleading narratives about high-emission industries, particularly during climate-driven emergencies.
However, efforts to tighten digital oversight face political resistance. In the United States, lawmakers aligned with former President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement have criticized the EU’s Digital Services Act and sought to weaken its provisions, raising concerns among European policymakers about potential transatlantic tensions over tech regulation.
Despite the pushback, Spanish officials and EU regulators appear determined to advance stricter standards.
Advocates say the stakes extend beyond climate policy. “Public safety, truth and democratic stability must not be sacrificed for profit,” the authors write, arguing that Spain’s reforms combined with EU-wide action signal growing momentum to counter disinformation at scale.
As climate impacts intensify across Europe, governments are increasingly treating the integrity of information as central to resilience positioning Spain at the forefront of a broader effort to safeguard facts in the digital age.