Comments on: Oil Industry Uses PBS Nova to Scare Voters About the "Risk" of Clean Energy

By: ktward

ktward — Tue, 11 May 2010 23:54:13 +0000

“This show [Energy: the Big Gamble] was designed to scare US voters, and initially, California voters who now face the oil industry’s ballot initiative to put a stop to pending climate legislation, AB32 to move the state to a clean energy economy.”

This NOVA show originally aired Jan. 20, 2009: long after AB32 was passed into law (2006), and well before CA’s current AB32 ballot initiative.

For a less hysterical, more sober look at this controversial NOVA show, try here:

http://www.onearth.org/node/905

By: Susan G

Susan G — Sun, 02 May 2010 20:46:58 +0000

I have been to your blog before. The more I take in, the more I keep coming back! ;-P

By: northern virginia seo

northern virginia seo — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 05:35:22 +0000

This is a huge point, I wish I would have thought of this earlier.

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 23:52:07 +0000

Good catch Susan. NOVA and PBS have just lost their credibility with me too.

By: juangault

juangault — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:36:23 +0000

I agree with automation. While I drive the speed limit, I see bad driving behaviour, usually solo young men in large pickups or SUV’s driving fast, erratic, obviously in a hurry. They’re on their way to work, like myself, but can’t seem to give themselves a few more minutes to be civil on the road. Conservation is the easiest way to save money and energy, and the most appropriate way to get people to conserve is to raise prices. Nobody likes to hear that, but it’s fair to the next generation to pay for our oil wars now, and to somehow keep up respect for our currency. Us older folks nearing retirement need to count on the money we’ve saved, that it will be worth something when we bail out of the rat wheel. Working people can only support so many rich people, so many poor people. Let’s hope they don’t get together on the “fair and balanced” planet and perpetuate forever, though a 51% majority, the easy life for themselves, at the expense of those who actually earn or create wealth.

By: Paul

Paul — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 10:01:57 +0000

Good Job Susan!

This sort of biased rubbish is par for the course these days in the media, from newspapers through broadcast and cable.

Blogs have become an important forum to ‘call out’ these lying retards, but what’s really needed is to go head to head with them.

With commodity level PCs, video cameras, free video editing software and Youtube… we suddenly now have the amazing opportunity where anyone can do their own documentary, and broadcast it themselves. And you don’t need the Koch family funding you to do it. 15 year old kids make their own sitcoms.

What goes around comes around, PBS will get their own, they just killed their credibility. You can’t BUY credibility, it can only be earned!

By: Guywithmattresstopper

Guywithmattresstopper — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 01:51:48 +0000

more of these, to help people

By: automation

automation — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 20:47:42 +0000

Climate change is a global problem, and yet each one of us has the power to make a difference. Even small changes in our daily behaviour can help prevent greenhouse gas emissions without affecting our quality of life. In fact, they can help save us money!

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 20:15:51 +0000

@Hank – I linked the transcript in “they actually insinuate that California has blackouts – supposedly because we have too much renewable energy!”

Here is where you can watch the preview – with the patronizing and treacly voice-over:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/energy/

Here is the comment section

http://discussions.pbs.org/viewforum.pbs?f=256

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 20:04:32 +0000

@DonJones Yeah – that was complete nonsense too, there was way too much disinformation to list it all in a quick read blog post.

By: Joe Independent

Joe Independent — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 19:46:49 +0000

The BIG scare should be giving our oil money to izlam and their terrorists SK: @Joe - "Izlam and their terrorists" have the oil – so THAT'S where Exxon drills. The US only has 2% of world supply. So Exxon couldn’t be the largest company making only 2% of world supply. But Exxon and the Koch Brothers make money on their foreign oil, not just on the 2% that's drilled in the US. “Exxon Mobil engages in oil and gas exploration, production, supply, transportation, and marketing around the world. It has proved reserves of just less than 21 billion barrels of oil equivalent.”

By: Bill W

Bill W — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 19:22:49 +0000

So much for NOVA’s reputation as a science show. Perhaps they were trying to counter the perception that PBS leans left, but they sure botched it.

By: Hank Roberts

Hank Roberts — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:54:54 +0000

Can you give a link to the video?

Searching finds a confusingly similarly named one, that’s from 2009:

California’s Energy Bet 01/16/09

http://www.channels.com/episodes/show/6531206/SLoS-Leech-Man-Mark-Siddall?page=4#/search?search_box=Nova%20PBS%20energy%20gamble

Also, PBS has a comments page you might want to link as well. IF you add the links, I suggest you put them at the top of the page.

By: don jones

don jones — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:11:58 +0000

They actually said that if you put solar collectors on one million house holds in California that it would only give you one percent of that states needs. Then went on to say how California have a concentrating solar plant but need more and were will they put them all. I actually asked aloud ” This is a NOVA program”?

By: Jacob

Jacob — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:26:11 +0000

Good on you susan, lies need to be confronted!