Helen Coster and Byron Kaye

NEW YORK/SYDNEY – Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, Australia (NASDAQ:), has created new environmental targets. An internal email revealed that the Australian division of News Corp (NASDAQ 🙂 set these goals to increase employee engagement in climate issues. It is also preparing an editorial campaign calling on governments and corporations to reduce carbon emissions.

These new targets, while not officially announced, will be incremental to the previous targets set for News Corp’s Australian division. They reflect an effort by News Corp to improve its environmental credentials in a market that has been subjected to harsh criticism for its reporting on climate-related topics.

In an email, a News Corp Australia spokesperson said that News Corp Australia had been reducing carbon emissions continuously over the past five years. This has averaged 7.4% per year for those 5 years.

He stated that this achievement had resulted in “new, ambitious targets” which he believes are achievable and meaningful.

Murdoch-controlled Fox Corp owned Fox News and News Corp commentators questioned global warming’s role in Australian bushfires. James Murdoch, Murdoch’s younger son, quit News Corp Board citing editorial differences. Other staff members in the country made public complaints about the News Corp climate coverage.

According to News Corp’s report on “carbon footprint”, 62% of News Corp global carbon emissions were attributed to Australia’s operations in 2020. This was according News Corp’s latest annual assessment, which showed that News Corp’s emissions had decreased 7% from the previous year.

According to Reuters’ Sept. 27 email, “We are reimagining, re-powering, and inviting all of News Corp Australia,” the September 27, 2007 email said that News Corp Australia was promoting sustainability.

These new targets “align with those agreed to by News Corp colleagues across the globe”, stated the email sent to the company’s 8,000 Australian employees. It was signed by Michael Miller, the country’s CEO, and Penny Fowler as a community ambassador.

According to the email, the new measures appear to reflect the global goals established by News Corp while also updating the environmental goals last stated by the Australian unit back in 2017.

According to an email, News Corp Australia has set a goal to reduce emissions by 20 percent by 2030. This is a new goal that was established by its parent company. A second goal is zero waste to landfill by 2025 at all its major locations, with an emphasis on single-use plastic.

This email establishes an outline for News Corp Australia’s timeline to source 100 percent of its newsprint from certified materials by 2025 and reduce the company’s carbon footprint by 60 per cent by 2030.

A report by the Australian revealed that the Australian Unit is planning a public campaign for the COP26 climate summit, which will take place in Glasgow in March. It aims to inform Australians about “key environmental and climate issues”.

According to media reports, the editorial campaign would encourage Australia to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2020, which is in keeping with an earlier stated News Corp goal. It would occur mainly in major metro tabloids such as Sydney’s Daily Telegraph or Melbourne’s Herald Sun.