I'll be the first to admit I know little about the factual basis on either side but I did see this today. While Jay Bookman is an editorial writer he does appear to do a decent job of researching factual background for his writings. Perhaps some of you that are more knowledgeable on the subject have the time and inclination to take a look at Jay's article today and the sources he cites. I'd be interested in the feedback.
http://jaybookman.blog.ajc.com/2015...sts-confirmed-the-truth-about-climate-change/
FWIW, if you read through this thread, you'll see that there's a pretty significant scientific debate on the significance of human contributions to so-called greenhouse gasses and climate change. The opinion piece you cite refers to a study that assumes a scientific consensus without discussing the serious debate and the failures of the models.
Its "news" is that Exxon apparently was aware of the science indicating significant impact without acting on it. However, it obfuscates on the fact that the actual climate change, especially global warming, has not been as drastic as was being predicted. As a result it presents a very biased report and would lead casual readers to a misunderstanding of the situation. For example, the following paragraph comes from the study hyperlinked by jaybookman:
Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University, who has been a frequent target of climate deniers, said that inaction, just like actions, have consequences. When he recently spoke to InsideClimate News, he was unaware of this chapter in Exxon's history.
Note that this paragraph refers to scientific opposition as "climate deniers." Clearly, it's not serious reporting. Secondly, it does not mention that the reason Michael Mann has been the target of scientific opposition is for his fraudulent "hockey stick" chart. See
this link. I just googled and grabbed one that seems to present the data fairly straight forwardly.