{"id":2810,"date":"2012-06-19T19:47:16","date_gmt":"2012-06-19T19:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=2810"},"modified":"2021-03-26T11:41:21","modified_gmt":"2021-03-26T15:41:21","slug":"energy-documentaries-%e2%80%93-educational-or-sensational","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2012\/06\/19\/energy-documentaries-%e2%80%93-educational-or-sensational\/","title":{"rendered":"Energy Documentaries \u2013 Educational Or Sensational?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 24-hour news cycle has prompted a higher quantity<\/em> of topics brought to viewer\u2019s and reader\u2019s attention. \u00a0However, with sound bites and the brevity of social media, rarely are topics reported with a balanced level of quality<\/em>. \u00a0Film documentaries are evolving as a more sophisticated medium to explore issues in expanded formats with interviews, commentary and a wider perspective. \u00a0But are some of these documentaries more fiction than fact?<\/p>\n

An Inconvenient Truth<\/a><\/em> advocated common sense about climate issues. \u00a0The Academy-Award nominated Gasland<\/a> <\/em>sparked much controversy about exploration and production of natural gas.\u00a0 Its sequel, Gasland II<\/em>, is scheduled to air on HBO this summer. \u00a0This week, a film Truthland<\/a> <\/em>debuted on YouTube (not in theaters) with more splash than substance.<\/p>\n

Of EDF\u2019s core strategies of sound science, market-based solutions, non-partisan policy and unlikely partnerships \u2013 a most<\/em><\/strong> unlikely partnership was mischaracterized by the producers of Truthland<\/em>. \u00a0My words in an interview in the documentary are accurate, but the context in which they were presented — implying that EDF agrees with the rhetoric presented in the film — is misleading.\u00a0 When interviewing for this film over a year ago, I was not told that the film would be subsequently sold to Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and Energy In Depth (EID), and used a promotional tool for the natural gas industry.\u00a0 In hindsight, I should have demanded more limitations on my interview \u2013 but the producers were very convincing when pitching the film as a presenting a \u201cbalanced perspective\u201d on the natural gas debate.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Rather than promoting Truthland<\/em>, I suggest a more impartial documentary choice where EDF\u2019s Senior Energy Policy Advisor Scott Anderson is interviewed as demonstration of how EDF\u2019s efforts<\/a> can decrease the adverse effects of natural gas development.\u00a0 The SWITCH Energy Project<\/a><\/em> offers a more sound approach to reviewing the past, present and future of energy solutions for the U.S. and globally. \u00a0University of Texas\u2019 Bureau of Economic Geology\u2019s Director Dr. Scott Tinker explores the world\u2019s leading energy sites, from coal to solar, oil to biofuels, with interviews of international leaders of government, industry and academia experts, plus a voice\u00a0 in the environmental community.<\/p>\n

Scott Anderson’s interview in the film<\/a> describes the natural gas drilling method of hydraulic fracturing and the regulatory atmosphere of improving environmental aspects pertaining to water, land and air quality issues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 24-hour news cycle has prompted a higher quantity of topics brought to viewer\u2019s and reader\u2019s attention. \u00a0However, with sound bites and the brevity of social media, rarely are topics reported with a balanced level of quality. \u00a0Film documentaries are evolving as a more sophisticated medium to explore issues in expanded formats with interviews, commentary …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[693],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-2810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-natural-gas"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEnergy Documentaries \u2013 Educational Or Sensational? - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2012\/06\/19\/energy-documentaries-\u2013-educational-or-sensational\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Energy Documentaries \u2013 Educational Or Sensational? 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