About this item

Corporations faced with proof that they are hurting people or the planet have a long history of denying evidence, blaming victims, complaining of witch hunts, attacking their critics' motives, and otherwise rationalizing their harmful activities. Denial campaigns have let corporations continue dangerous practices that cause widespread suffering, death, and environmental destruction. And, by undermining social trust in science and government, corporate denial has made it harder for our democracy to function. Barbara Freese, an environmental attorney, confronted corporate denial years ago when cross-examining coal industry witnesses who were disputing the science of climate change. She set out to discover how far from reality corporate denial had led society in the past and what damage it had done.



About the Author

Barbara Freese

Barbara Freese is an environmental attorney and writer, with a particular focus on climate change, energy policy, and corporate social responsibility. She is a former Minnesota assistant attorney general and a former senior policy analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists, and she has represented various environmental and clean energy nonprofit groups working to protect the climate. Her first book, Coal: A Human History, is a New York Times Notable Book. Her latest book is Industrial-Strength Denial: Eight Stories of Corporations Defending the Indefensible, from the Slave Trade to Climate Change. She lives in St. Paul, Minnesota.



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