By Matt Howes
Originally posted on The MarkUp.
It's hard to think how a recent article in the Akron Beacon Journal could have left out any more relevant information. The Journal is a reputable paper, and so we were surprised by the article’s flaws.
The article, entitled "Hundreds rally against taxes on oil and natural gas," has several key omissions including:
The article says that there were about 400 energy advocates, and that “Most arrived in four buses that delivered them from the Canton area. One arrived from Mount Vernon.” What the article failed to mention, is that at least some of these buses were paid for by oil companies (or their front groups) and were filled with oil company staff. ThinkProgress has a great video clip about it here.
The article mentions that “Karen Wright, president and chief executive of Ariel Corp., a manufacturer of natural gas compressors” spoke, but failed to mention that Karen Wright ridiculed climate change as “questionable science” and referred to pollutants as “so-called carbon dioxide emissions.” Wright went on to rail against “so-called green jobs” that were “dubious” and “phony.” Given that climate change is an established fact and the U.S. Conference of Mayors indicates there are thousands of currently existing ‘green’ jobs in Ohio, the article should have commented on the ignorance of a keynote speaker, instead of repeating her talking points. It also bears noting that cleanenergy reforms would bring between 35 thousand and 61 thousand jobs to Ohio.
Although the article mentions the role of the American Petroleum Institute, it fails to mention their history of using misleading grassroots campaigns and the role of the Koch Brothers. Rachel Maddow has a great commentary about this situation here.
I'd encourage the Akron Beacon Journal to improve its reporting in the future.
Additional Reading:
Koch-Funded Oil Rally Calls Global Warming A ‘Hoax,’ Dismisses Oil Spill, And Attacks Democrats