At first glance , thestorylooks like something your aunt might post on her Facebook from her local newspaper . “ Midland County judge ‘ pardons ’ jaywalk puppy , ” the headline reads , with a photo of a startled - await Pomeranian behind a microphone , on the face of it on a witness rack . The post details how a Texas justice found a dog underneath his truck in the parking lot of his courthouse and used social spiritualist to discover the owner .
But the piece is n’t a quirky sense - good tarradiddle from a local report . agree to data point blot out on the land site but provide in the web site ’s societal preview cards , the puppy clause is write by Mike Aldax , a man who live more than 1,000 miles away from Midland . The entire internet site is bankrolled by oil goliath Chevron ; since 2014 , Aldax , who works at San Francisco - base public relations firm Singer Associates , has also written for a Chevron - fund paper in California calledthe Richmond Standard .
The new internet site , calledPermian Proud , is another exercise in a long story of the oil giant using paid media to disseminate its messaging in crucial geographic domain — this metre , in the oil color - rich Permian Basin in Texas . And Chevron is undulate out its site in one of the most local news - starved region of a state that has seenone - third of its newsprint closeover the retiring two decades .
The Permian Proud website.Screenshot: Gizmodo
However , navigating over to the “ Industry ” check cause it clear that the land site is also localise up to facilitate Chevron disseminate greenwashing information about the society . One article in that tablet , on the face of it directlylifted from a bodied press outlet , touts asolar projectthat will lower the “ C intensity ” of Chevron ’s operation in the Permian ( a misleading termused by oil and accelerator pedal companiesthat allows them to continue to bring on more fossil fuel while claiming to be environmentally responsible ) . Other posts focalize on anoutside companythat present Chevron a high rating for “ environmental and social performance , ” as well as Chevron drilling operationsincreasing the use of goods and services of recycled water ; these posts blend in seamlessly in the site ’s sidebar with the local tidings and sports article . A footnote disclaimer on the site explains that the web site is set up to “ put up Permian Basin residents with information about what ’s going on in the community , and to allow a voice for [ Chevron ] on civil issues”—leaving room for those cute puppy jaywalking stories to potentially be mate with company language on local politics or case in the future .
While there are no source bylines displayed on the site , the reservoir code for several clause Earther examined as well as data point displayed on the article ’ social cards show that they were authored by Aldax , who has long pen for Chevron ’s Richmond Standard . The town of Richmond is home to a Chevron refinery that has a chronicle ofcreating environmental problem in Black and brown communities , and the news site was founded less than two geezerhood after the refinery exploded in 2012 . Like the Permian Proud project , the Richmond Standard homepage is a mix of local tidings but admit a part call up “ Chevron Richmond Refinery Speaks , ” whichposts updatesfrom the company .
“ Permian Proud is guide and manage by our Mid Continent Business Unit , ” the spokesperson sound out when involve about Aldax ’s involvement . “ They ask for assistance from Singer Associates given the communication theory agency ’s experience in community news sites . ” The voice said that the current site is “ a launching edition of the digital newspaper designed to preview it to Permian Basin occupant , ” and future iterations of the internet site “ may or may not include bylines . ”
The social preview card for the puppy article displaying Aldax’s name.Screenshot: Gizmodo
The local news landscape painting in the U.S. is reaching a crisis point , and Texas has view some of the swelled changes . accord to areportfrom the Local News Initiative at Northwestern University ’s Medill School of Journalism report on by the Texas Tribune , 27 of Texas ’s 274 counties have zero intelligence outlets , while the state has the third - high bit of journalists per capita lost since 2005 , ranking just behind California and New Jersey . Of the persist county with newsworthiness outlets , a little more than half have just one source of news . The Permian Basin region is in even forged shape local tidings - wise than the rest of Texas : fit in to figures Earther analyzed , almost half of the Texas counties with no news outlets are in the Permian .
In the absence of authentic local media , “ masses turn to whatever news source is in front of them , ” said Maddie Kriger , a consultant for communication theory group Climate Power . “ For a site like this , it seems like Chevron wanted a site where disinformation could be dressed up . ”
The Texas Railroad Commission , which shape oil and gaseous state yield in the body politic , lists61 counties as part of the greater Permian Basin realm . Of those county , Earther find , at least 13 have no local news sources . That ’s more than 20 % of counties in the part , double the overall charge per unit for the rest of the state of matter . Of the stay 48 counties , the overwhelming majority—42 — have only one source of news ; most of those reservoir are a weekly paper . The data on local news wall socket was gather up from the Medill report as well as land - stage statistics from UNC ’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media , which keepscounty - level dataon U.S. tidings deserts .
Many of the county in the Permian region have few residents , which makes their deficiency of intelligence outlets unsurprising : Loving County , for instance , has a universe ofjust 57 , making it the mostsparsely populated county in the Carry Amelia Moore Nation . But the Permian area , which cross thousands of square land mile across three states , also has some serious gap in tidings reportage — specially in Texas . Val Verde County , which is plate to asmaller torpedo - basin of the Permianand where Chevron hashundreds of oil colour and gaseous state rental , has more than47,000 residents ; its everyday paper , the Del Rio News - Herald , closedin November 2020 .
It ’s into this news void that Chevron is opening its first step . A large trunk of researchsuggeststhat the dearth of local news outlets has aided the rise of misinformation , as people explore out choice , less - trustworthy sources for data .
“ Social media flattens everything , ” say Kriger . “ A New York Times story can depend exactly like a fake Chevron tidings site story on a platform like Facebook . There ’s fewer signal for genuineness , even if mass were looking for them . ”
CaliforniaChevron CorporationPetroleum industry
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