MSNBC Is Pimping For Big Oil and Fracking

[Dover]

This evening I watched a new program called Rock Center (kind of like Nightline) hosted by Brian Williams.
Last week they did a piece on the Oil Boom Town in North Dakota where it is expected that there will be 50,000 wells drilled.
And they made a point of extolling the benefits of this boom - jobs, jobs, jobs! Kind of like "hey there's gold in them thar hills!"
So tonight they explained how huge the response was to their story by people wanting to go to N.D. for these jobs. And then
they mentioned that these oil companies were using "fracking" to get the oil out of the ground. This is where it began to
dawn on me that they were pimping. They showed a little demonstration of what fracking did...a very benign illustration.
Then a real whitewashing of the subject, playing down any potential problems and not even alluding to the controversy surrounding
its potential for harm and effect on the environment. So their bias was VERY clear. Disgusted but not surprised.


Check out both the original segment from last week and this week.
http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/07/8685880-boomtown-hundreds-seek-north-dakota-jobs-after-rock-center-report#comments


Then read the comments afterwards. Here's just one comment:


I can't believe how irresponsible the segment with Harry was. He explains, "You just drill down and there's a little bit of chemicals with a little bit of water." Did any of your researchers check out what is happening in New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado where people's wells are being poisoned and flames come out of water faucets. Obviously not. Oil companies are refusing to say which chemicals they use in the fracking process. People who have contracted cancer becasue of the pollution to their water systems can't get proper treatment. Have any of yoru researchers bothered to figure out the traffic load in and out of these areas - the wear and tear on the road system is beyond sustainable and the oil companeis don't pay for the infrastructire and the states can' afford to cover it. What about another segment focusign on the down side. Just offering a few jobs is hardly the whole picture.

http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/07/8685880-boomtown-hundreds-seek-north-dakota-jobs-after-rock-center-report#comments

[CC]

1. Beyond the fracking etc.

anyone wanting to work in the oil fields of any type should read 'The Legend of Colton H. Bryant' by Alexandra Fuller first.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90974220

[Dover]

2. Can you provide a short summary? n/t

[CC]

3. It is about a guy in Wyoming

that worked the oil fields until he was killed at (I think 27 but going on memory). The company was fined $7,000.00 for safety violation (no railing at all), his family got nothing. Story mostly tells about his life. She does a great job of describing the life and how hard it can be to get away from the oil fields.

"On Valentine's Day night 2006, Bryant fell 26 feet from the catwalk around an oil well's conductor pipe."
http://articles.latimes.com/2008/aug/10/entertainment/ca-alexandra-fuller10
The above has a better summary.

[wtmusic]

4. Happen to notice who the sponsors were?

Wouldn't be surprised if it was more or less an infomercial bought and paid for by Big Petroleum.

[Dover]

5. Yes it was one long infomercial. Clearly pandering to big oil.

Essentially asking Americans to ignore their conscience along with the dangers and destruction to the environment..OUR environment... in order to secure some jobs.

I'm sure they sell their souls to the highest bidder everyday. No biggy. And I guess they expect us to follow suit.

[truebrit71]

6. Brian Williams hosted a right-wing biased "news" show....I am shocked I tellya...

...SHOCKED!!

He was touting Big Oil's positions??

SHOCKING!!

[JohnWxy]

7. recommended.