Funders back away from scientist Dr Wei-Hock Soon who accepted $1.25m in funding from Exxon Mobil and othersFunders have backed away from a prominent climate change denier who may have failed to disclose that his peer-reviewed articles were funded with grants from petroleum companies. On Monday, the scientist defended accepting the grants through one of the largest climate denial lobbying groups in the United States, even as former donors are discontinuing contracts.