American Clean Skies Foundation

The American Clean Skies Foundation -- a Washington D.C. based 501(c)3 non-profit group -- states on its website that it "was formed in 2007 to provide all the facts on clean energy -- particularly natural gas and other clean fuels such as wind and solar -- and about the need for greater energy efficiency." The organization was founded by Aubrey K. McClendon, the billionaire CEO of Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp., one of the country's top sellers of natural gas.

In December 2007, the Foundation reported $2,836,504 in assets and $3,166,303 in income, according to Internal Revenue Service reports.

Clean Skies TV Network
In April 2008, the Foundation launched CleanSkies.tv, later renamed the Clean Skies TV Network. The online video channel "has applied for press credentials that would place its reporters and crew inside the U.S. Capitol," according to Dow Jones. The CleanSkies.tv program "Clean Skies Sunday," which is anchored by former CBS Morning News host Susan McGinnis, is also broadcast by the WJLA-7, the ABC affiliate in Washington DC. One show featured Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon discussing a Clean Skies Foundation report that concluded "natural gas supplies are vast enough to meet current demand for more than 100 years, a key talking point by the natural gas industry in its congressional lobbying efforts."

CleanSkies.tv initially had "peer-group partners," which "advise it on select programming," including Honda USA, Natural Gas Vehicles for America and natural-gas provider Clean Energy Fuels.

In late 2008, Chesapeake plans to launch another online video channel, Shale.tv, named after the Barnett Shale natural gas formation in North Texas.

Branded News
CleanSkies.tv was initially "operated by Branded News, the Oklahoma company that also runs the National Rifle Association's online television site." The CleanSkies.tv news division "is part of the CleanSkies.tv network, but says its activities are shielded from the foundation's influence by an oversight committee chaired by former Associated Press Chairman Burl Osborne," according to a 2008 article.

As of 2009, the Clean Skies Network website stated, "The Board of Directors of the [American Clean Skies] Foundation believes that one of the best ways they can accomplish their mission is to fully support our News Division in its efforts to inform the public about all forms of energy, objectively and free from bias. Clean Skies News operates with full editorial independence in its' [sic] reporting, guaranteed."

ShaleCountry.Com
In July 2010, ACSF launched the "Shale Country" website, to promote their mission of promoting natural gas as a clean fuel.

The video aspect of this project is being managed by Harriet Gordon Getzels.


 * Link to www.shalecountry.com website:
 * Production credits at www.shalecountry.com

Personnel
In 2008, the CleanSkies.tv program "Energy Matters" was hosted by former oil lobbyist Denise Bode and was also broadcast on Oklahoma's News Radio 1000, KTOK.

In addition to McGinnis, former journalists working for CleanSkies.tv in 2008 included Kelley Rickenbaker, formerly of CBS and CNN; Jim Allen; and Anna Davalos, formerly of the Associated Press Online Video Network.

Personnel

 * Aubrey McClendon, Chairman & Founder

Former personnel

 * Denise A. Bode, CEO. "Bode served for seven years as president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) in Washington, D.C., a national trade organization representing America’s natural gas and oil producers."

Contact details
American Clean Skies Foundation 750 1st St N.E. Suite 1100 Washington D.C. 20002 Phone: 202-682-6294 Fax: 202-682-3050 Website: http://www.cleanskies.org/

Mission Statement as Propaganda
"The American Clean Skies Foundation was formed to educate the American public about clean energy- particularly natural gas and other clean fuels such as wind and solar- and about the need for greater energy efficiency, and for any other exclusively religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purpose included within the meaning of section 501(c) (3) of the Internal revenue Code of 1986 or the corresponding section of any future tax code (the 'Code')"

Derrick Jensen and others have pointed out that an element of successful propaganda is if the creators of the message can slide their premises by the audience, without their noticing. So when a Nazi sympathizer asks the question, "What are we going to do about the Jewish problem?", if you answer, he has won, because he has gotten you to accept the premise that a) there is a Jewish problem, and b) something should be done about it. It looks like a question, but it is actually propaganda.

Similarly, we normally don't think about a mission statement as being propaganda, but notice well this part:

The American Clean Skies Foundation was formed to educate the American public about clean energy- particularly natural gas  and other clean fuels....

OK, clean fuels. That's all good. But why mention natural gas here at all? Why not just say "we want to educate about clean fuels" and let the science show what that is? How did they decide a priori that natural gas was "clean energy"? Is this a natural fact which no one disputes? Or is there controversy and doubt about this claim? (A: There is controversy around this claim!) Do the creators of this so-called charitable foundation have financial connections to the gas industry? (Yes, they do!)

Links

 * GuideStar Entry (may need free registration to view this page)

Note that the NTEE classification is "Environmental Quality Protection, Beautification / (Research Institutes and/or Public Policy Analysis)"

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Aubrey McClendon
 * Branded News

External resources

 * "American Clean Skies Foundation relationship map," Muckety.com, accessed July 2009.