ComedyClimate ChangeJohn Oliverlast week tonight

John Oliver Calls Out Big Oil Trade Group For Plagiarism

"You took our s**t," Oliver said of American Petroleum Institute ad that aired during the Olympics.
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By 

Senior Reporter, HuffPost

The oil industry’s lobbying arm, already under fire for its role in a decades-long climate change cover-up, has now been accused of plagiarism.

John Oliver, host of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight,” said on Sunday’s show that the Rio Olympics has been chock full of “starring performances,” none as bold as a TV advertisement aired by the American Petroleum Institute, or API. 

“You took our shit, API!” Oliver said of the trade group’s ad, which looks suspiciously similar to “Last Week Tonight’s” opening credits. “You took our shit. Everything, from the font to the design style.”

The copying is so spot on, Oliver said he was “honestly worried I was about to watch 29 minutes of a rat-faced Englishman telling me sad news facts.”

Left with “no choice” but to return API the favor, Oliver aired new mock opening credits for “Last Week Tonight,” featuring hoody wearing, Instagram-loving millennials. 

“Hey Rebecca, did you know the API spent decades and millions of dollars supporting deniers of man-made climate change?” a chipper actor named Andy asks in the fake introduction. 

“I did,” an actress named Rebecca responds. “Did you know they had research warning them about a link between fossil fuels and climate change as early as 1968? Maybe that’s why their logo looks like it’s being impaled by a polar bear’s dick.”

API did not respond to The Huffington Post’s requests for comment.

See Oliver’s full takedown of the American Petroleum Institute below.

WARNING: The segment contains strong language and sexual content.

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Before You Go

Here's What The 10 Leading GOP Candidates Think Of Climate Change
Donald "It's Cold Outside" Trump(01 of10)
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"It’s snowing & freezing in NYC. What the hell ever happened to global warming?" -- March 2013

“I believe in clean air. Immaculate air. But I don't believe in climate change." -- Sept. 2015

"It's really cold outside, they are calling it a major freeze, weeks ahead of normal. Man, we could use a big fat dose of global warming!" -- Oct. 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Ben "This Always Happens" Carson(02 of10)
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“There’s always going to be either cooling or warming going on. As far as I’m concerned, that’s irrelevant. What is relevant is that we have an obligation and a responsibility to protect our environment." -- Nov. 2014

"Of course there's climate change. Any point in time, temperatures are going up or temperatures are going down. Of course that's happening. When that stops happening, that's when we're in big trouble." -- Sept. 2015 (credit:Erik Kabik Photography/ MediaPunch/MediaPunch/IPx)
Marco "Oh But The Jobs" Rubio(03 of10)
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“We are not going to destroy our economy, make America a harder place to create jobs, in order to pursue a policy that will do nothing, nothing to change our climate, to change our weather." -- Sept. 2015

"America is not a planet." -- Sept. 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Ted "You Climate Blasphemers, You" Cruz(04 of10)
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“If you look at satellite data for the last 18 years, there’s been zero recorded warming. The satellite says it ain’t happening.” -- August 2015

“Climate change is not science. It's religion." -- Oct. 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Jeb "Well Maybe, But I'm A Republican" Bush(05 of10)
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"The climate is changing, whether men are doing it or not." -- June 2015

“I don't think it's the highest priority. I don’t think we should ignore it, either." -- August 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Carly "I Worked With Scientists And They're All Wrong" Fiorina(06 of10)
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"I believe if you're going to go to science, you need to read the fine print. And here's what the scientists say: A single nation acting alone can make no difference at all." -- Sept. 2015

“The only answer to this problem, according to the scientist, is a three-decade global effort, coordinated and costing coordinated effort. It's impossible, are you kidding? A three-decade effort, costing trillions of dollars, coordinated with current technology? It’ll never happen.” -- Sept. 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mike "Um, Kaboom" Huckabee(07 of10)
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"Science is not as settled on that as it is on some things.” -- June 2015

"A volcano in one blast will contribute more than a hundred years of human activity." -- August 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Chris "Sure, But Nah" Christie(08 of10)
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"I think global warming is real. I don't think that's deniable. And I do think human activity contributes to it."* -- May 2015

*But Christie has adamantly opposed New Jersey joining into a multi-state greenhouse gas initiative, calling it "a completely useless plan.” -- Sept. 2014 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
John "It's Your Kids' Problem" Kasich(09 of10)
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“We don’t want to destroy people’s jobs, based on some theory that is not proven.” --August 2015

"Do I believe there is something called climate change? I do. Do I think that human beings affect it? I do. How much? Not enough for me to go out and cost somebody their job." -- Oct. 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Rand "Doesn't Really Know" Paul(10 of10)
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"Not conclusive." -- April 2014

"Not sure anybody exactly knows why." -- April 2014

"Alarmist." -- April 2014

"I don't want to shut down all forms of energy such that thousands and thousands of people lose jobs.” -- April 2015 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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