Category Archives: blog
New disclosures raise more questions about Obama’s Energy pick
Recently-released financial disclosures are shedding additional light on the severity of conflicts of interest surrounding an influential MIT natural gas study led by Ernest Moniz, President Obama’s choice to lead the Department of Energy. The Public Accountability Initiative first raised … Continue reading
Frackademics: Shale Institute’s Jacobi hired to do seismic study for DEC
New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation has chosen Robert Jacobi, a University at Buffalo geologist with ties to the natural gas industry, to study the link between fracking and earthquakes, a DEC spokeswoman told Bloomberg‘s Jim Esftathiou, Jr. Jacobi, who … Continue reading
Opponents of minimum wage increase in NYS tap a notorious tobacco lobbyist
Opponents of the proposed minimum wage increase in New York State have tapped a notorious tobacco and fast food lobbyist to help them make their case. One of Berman’s industry front groups, the Employment Policies Institute, published an op-ed in … Continue reading
University of Texas reviewers blast fracking report and recommend its withdrawal
The panel chosen by the University of Texas to assess a study on fracking issued by the university’s Energy Institute has released its review, finding the study “falls short of the generally accepted rigor required for the publication of scientific work” … Continue reading
PAI Statement on UB’s Closing of Shale Institute
Statement of Kevin Connor, director of the Public Accountability Initiative (PAI) on the closing of UB’s Shale Resources and Society Institute* The University at Buffalo took an important stand for principles of academic integrity and transparency with its decision to … Continue reading
The Scope of the University of Texas Fracking Review
Last week, the University of Texas at Austin announced that “three nationally renowned leaders in science, public service and higher education” would review the industry-friendly report issued in February by its Energy Institute that has been the center of a … Continue reading
UT Austin Chooses Oil & Gas Industry Insider to Review Fracking Report
The University of Texas at Austin named a panel of three experts to review its troubled fracking report today. There’s a problem with the panel: it’s being chaired by a longtime oil and gas industry insider. This is the statement … Continue reading
University of Texas Promises Review of Fracking Study in Response to PAI’s Criticism
The publication this week of the Public Accountability Initiative’s report “Contaminated Inquiry”, together with a lengthy article by Jim Efstathiou Jr. for Bloomberg (“Frackers Fund University Research That Proves Their Case”) and further press coverage, has elicited a response from the … Continue reading
University at Buffalo rejects call for transparency at Shale Institute
The controversy surrounding the University at Buffalo’s shale institute continued to grow yesterday, with the university’s administration rebuffing a new coalition’s calls for transparency at the institute. Last month, PAI released a report identifying significant errors and distortions in a … Continue reading
Frackademics: Timothy Considine – Analyst or Advocate?
Businesses in controversial industries often turn to the academy for evidence exculpating them for the harm that they do, with trade groups funding “scholarly” reports claiming that their products and business practices are safe for the public. In much the … Continue reading