Extinction Rebellion was out in force on Wednesday morning (22 March), splashing the offices of several newspapers with green paint to protest “blatant suppression of crucial news on the climate and ecological crisis” by the “the billionaire tabloid press”.
Targets included Rupert Murdoch’s shiny News UK headquarters in London Bridge, home to the Sun, Times and Sunday Times, as well as Telegraph towers in Victoria. Hacks at DMGT, an obvious target as the publisher of the Mail newspapers and Mail Online, thought they’d dodged a bullet when they noticed Extinction Rebellion daubing the wrong building.
Protesters were evidently unaware that Northcliffe House, the long-standing home of the Mail, is currently vacated and undergoing renovations. Mail staff have been packed off to another Kensington office just across the street, giving them a good spot from which to watch the action unfold. Their peace didn’t last long – the activists soon realised their error and found their way to the Mail‘s new home.
The Telegraph reported that the Metropolitan Police had arrested seven people on suspicion of causing criminal damage across the three sites. Newspaper bosses can’t rest easy just yet, though. Extinction Rebellion said that Wednesday’s actions were part of its “countdown” to a mass protest that is planned outside the Houses of Parliament. That isn’t until 21 April – meaning more green splashes could be on the agenda for Fleet Street over the next month.
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