Green Business: WKÖ’s €17M Ads Funded ÖVP Campaign

Green Business: WKÖ’s €17M Ads Funded ÖVP Campaign

Photo: Manfred Burger

The Green Business faction is criticizing the advertising expenditures of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKÖ). In the first half of 2024, a total of €17.3 million was spent on advertising, almost matching the total for the entire previous year, which amounted to approximately €18 million, according to a press release from the faction citing data from the RTR. The faction accuses the WKÖ of cross-financing the ÖVP’s policies “during election campaign periods.” A WKÖ spokesperson rejected the criticism in a statement to APA.

For Sabine Jungwirth, the federal spokesperson of the Green Business faction, the data shows that the WKÖ “brazenly dipped into its funds during election campaign periods” and “unilaterally supported the ÖVP’s policies.” For example, the WKÖ is said to have run campaigns promoting “technological openness” toward e-fuels for passenger cars and liquid fuels for heating purposes.

From the WKÖ’s perspective, this accusation “lacks any basis,” as the 2023 and 2024 figures are not comparable due to different survey and calculation methods. The change stems from an amendment to the Media Transparency Act, which recently began requiring the inclusion of expenditures for billboards and sponsorships. The “Standard” also reported on the advertising expenditures in its weekend edition.

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