In London, the Natural History Museum is said to have signed a contract with a Danish oil company that would prevent any criticism against it from the institution. This has been denounced by several media outlets since 8 January 2023.

The facts date back to 2016, when the museum signed a contract with Dong Energy, one of the clauses of which stipulated that it could not make "any statement" that could "damage the reputation" of the company. Now called Ørsted, it has sponsored the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition since 2016. The contract, however, is to remain in force until September 2023.

The silence clause, now revealed, has led to accusations of greenwashing from various environmental groups and concerns about the influence of large companies on public discourse in general.