Frackademia

frackademia (fræk・ə・di・mi・ə) n. The complex of oil-and-gas-allied academics, think tanks, consulting firms, and public relations shops producing misleading and flawed research to win public and political support for hydraulic fracturing. Beginning in 2012, PAI has compiled and released a large quantity of research on the phenomenon now known as “frackademia,” by which the oil and …

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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 shutter the Shale Institute today. The decision sends a strong message to the oil and …

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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 report released by the University at Buffalo’s brand-new Shale Resources and Society Institute (SRSI). The …

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UB Pulls SRSI Website (updated)

The University at Buffalo Shale Resources and Society Institute (SRSI), the subject of the analysis we released yesterday, has password-protected its website as of this morning. Notably, the SUNY Fredonia Shale Resources Institute also pulled its website recently after negative attention from Artvoice. Saved copies of most of the site’s pages are below. Update (5/26): …

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