Representatives from around the world have gathered for the annual U.N. Climate Change Conference to hammer out a plan to keep the planet from catastrophically warming. The event, known as COP 25, is being held in Madrid, Spain, from December 2 to 13 and brings together world leaders, diplomats, social activists, and climate community leaders -- along with representatives of the coal, gas, and oil industries.

This year’s conference is not unique -- the fossil fuel industry has been present at every single negotiation going back 25 years. Developing nations and nongovernmental organizations have been trying to drag this conflict of interest into the daylight for years, but they’ve had little assistance from U.S. media.

An analysis of major U.S. network news and newspaper coverage of last year’s climate talks -- held in Katowice, Poland, from December 2-14, 2018 -- found that the presence of fossil fuel interests at global climate negotiations was referenced in only five (11.6%) of 43 articles. No reference to the fossil fuel industry was made by network news.

A review of the first week of COP 25 coverage suggests that this year will be no different.

Major U.S. television channels and newspapers have yet to cover the presence of fossil fuel interests at the climate talks despite the presence of conspicuous corporate branding touting false industry solutions and Big Polluter events.

As of Monday, just four major U.S. newspapers have covered the event in their print edition for a total of 10 articles: The Washington Post (four articles), The Boston Globe (three), Chicago Tribune (two), and The New York Times (one). CNN is the only major cable news network to mention the event in prime time. News programs of the three major broadcast networks -- ABC, CBS, and NBC -- have yet to cover the conference.

This year’s coverage is already falling behind last year’s lackluster reporting, which produced 20 articles -- twice as many -- during the same period. Four of the five fossil fuel industry mentions during the 2018 coverage appeared in the first week.