John Oliver has been showered in praise after forgiving nearly $15 million dollars in debt on “Last Week Tonight”, but one group says the idea was not his.

Related: John Oliver Makes TV History By Forgiving 15 Million In Debt

Activism group the Debt Collective released a statement on Monday, alleging that they were contacted eight months ago by a researcher from the show. The activists say they have erased more than $30 million in medical and tuition debt from 2012 to 2015.

The group is upset with not being given proper credit, after linking the show’s researchers with other resources: “We spent hours on the phone and email with [“Last Week Tonight’] explaining how we did our work and connecting them with other experts…”

The research from the HBO show says a last-minute decision was made to shift direction: “[“Last Week Tonight’] did not want to associate themselves with the work of the Rolling Jubilee due to its roots in Occupy Wall Street. Instead John Oliver framed the debt buy as his idea: a giveaway to compete with Oprah. The lead researcher who worked on this segment invoked the cover of journalism to justify distancing themselves from our project.”

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In the statement, the Debt Collective refutes the defense as: “ironic given that the show has expressly claimed not to be doing journalism.”

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