Oil Spill Good News Bogus? Shell Flummoxed by Fakers

"Shell, Chevron, and the others are perpetrating a massive, life-threatening hoax by claiming that they can't quickly stop their gas flaring, reduce their oil spills, and clean up their mess in the Niger Delta," said Chris Francis of the Nigerian Justice League. "Our press release revealed the truth: that there is a decent way forward, instead of the continual deceit we get from them."

Shell's public relations staff quickly and energetically moved to contain the fallout from the fake release. On Tuesday, Shell attempted to eliminate the Justice League's spoof Shell website by complaining that it was a "phishing scheme" to the upstream internet service provider. Shell then sent a threatening legal letter to the Danish internet provider hosting the site.

In a related story, the Financial Times (a blog of which, incidentally, was duped by the fake release) refused to run a hard-hitting advertisement, created and paid for by Amnesty International, that called for action against Shell for its Niger Delta legacy. Like the fake release, the ad was timed to coincide with Shell's May 18 AGM.

"For now, Shell's legal threats are bearing ripe fruit," said Esmée de la Parra of the Nigerian Justice League. "But they can't keep blustering their way to destruction forever. Eventually, people will have had enough. For the sake of the planet, let's hope 'eventually' is very soon."