Author Archives | John M. Simpson
John M. Simpson - who has written 78 posts on Oil Watchdog.
John M. Simpson is a veteran journalist who held top editing positions at international, national and community newspapers. Most recently he was executive editor of Tribune Media Services International, a syndication company. He was previously deputy editor of USA Today and editor of its international edition.
Simpson taught journalism at Dublin City University in Ireland, and consulted for The Irish Times and The Gleaner in Jamaica. He served as president of the World Editors Forum. Recently he wrote FTCR's report, "Affordability, Accessibility & Accountability in California Stem Cell Research." His op-ed articles have appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Jose Mercury News, the Sacramento Bee, and the Wisconsin State Journal.
Simpson holds a B.A. in philosophy from Harpur College of SUNY Binghamton and was a Gannett Fellow at the Center for Asian and Pacific Studies at the University of Hawaii. He has an M.A. in Communication Management from the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication.
Blog Post
New report documents problems at Big Oil U
Big Oil has flooded campuses with millions of dollars to pay for clean energy research at American universities, undermining tradition academic values and potentially furthering a narrow commercial research agenda, according to a report released Thursday by the Center for American Progress. Jennifer Washburn shows how Big Oil has underwritten research at top-tier universities with few protections for scientific objectivity or scholarly independence.
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Greasing The Wheels
Friday, May 16, 2008
5-16-08 by simpson Chevron Corp. just gave $100,000 to Gov. Schwarzenegger’s Dream Team Committee making the oil giant the 14th biggest contributor to Arnold since 2003. Chevron has given his various committees a total of $765,800. The most recent infusion of cash came on May 5 just before the Public Utilities Commission signed off on [...]
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Chevron Busts Family Budgets
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Chevron Busts Family Budgets In Struggling California Town Of Casmalia State PUC Grants Oil Giant’s Water Company 89.7 Percent Rate Increase; Chevron Wanted 138 Percent CONTACT: John M. Simpson, 310-392-0522, ext 317; or cell: 310-292-1902 May 15, 2008 Santa Monica, CA — A decision today by the California Public Utilities Commission to grant a whopping [...]
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Op-Ed: Big Oil & Water
Thursday, May 15, 2008
The following Op-Ed Commentary by Consumer Watchdog’s John M. Simpson, was published in the San Francisco Chronicle on Thursday, May 15, 2008: They say oil and water don’t mix. Maybe that’s why Chevron is so tone-deaf in its dealings with a small California town that depends on the oil company for its water. Chevron, which [...]
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Rockefellers: Change Exxon
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
04-30-08 by simpson What’s known as America’s First Family of Oil, the Rockefellers, wants Exxon Mobil, the oil giant descended from John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil, to change it is ways. They’re worried the company doesn’t care enough about the environment or developing alternative energy. Forbes quoted Neva Rockefeller Goodwin, a great-granddaughter of John D. [...]
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Exxon Hit For Its Secrecy
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
04-29-08 by simpson Oil giant ExxonMobil is as secretive as its competitors in Russia and China, according to a report just released by Transparency International, a global organization fighting corruption. "The tragic paradox, that many resource-rich countries remain poor, stems from a lack of data on oil and gas revenues and how they are managed," [...]
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Fighting $4-a-gallon diesel
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
4-23-08 by simpson An Apache Junction, Arizona, trucking firm is fighting to stay in business in the face of $4-a-gallon diesel by driving across the border to Mexico to buy fuel where it sells for $2 a gallon. CNN tells the story of how Romano and Son built a 500-gallon tank to haul diesel fuel [...]
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A Chevron Ghost Town?
Thursday, April 3, 2008
04-03-08 by simpson Residents of the tiny Central Coast community of Casmalia are asking if Oil Giant Chevron, which supplies water to the community through a subsidiary, wants to turn the hamlet into a ghost town. You’ll recall that the Casmite, the Chevron-owned company supplying water to the community’s 200 residents asked the Public Utilities [...]
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Greasing Government’s Wheels
Thursday, March 20, 2008
33/20/08 by simpson What’s it take to keep government chugging along smoothly in your favor? In Exxon Mobil’s case, the oil giant’s executives opted to plunk down $16.9 million in 2007 to lobby the federal government. That’s the amount listed in a recent disclosure form filed with the U.S. Senate’s office of public disclosure, according [...]
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Chevron’s Water Fight
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
3-04-08 by simpson A California Public Utilities Commission staff report recommends a whopping 89.7 percent rate increase for a Chevron-owned water company serving the tiny hamlet of Casmalia. Not as outrageous as the 138 percent increase the company asked for, it still threatens the town’s existence. The PUC proposed hike would mean an average $217 [...]
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Big Oil Causing Recession?
Thursday, January 24, 2008
1-24-08 by simpson As econmic storm clouds gather and politicos in Washington scramble to prevent a recession, much attention has been focused on the housing market and bad loans. Our oil industry expert, "Insider" sees another culprit that he predicts will put the U.S. in a deep hole the likes of which haven’t been seen [...]
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ConocoPhillips’ Record 4th Qtr
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
NEWS RELEASE January 7, 2008 CONTACT: John M. Simpson, 310-392-0522, x317; or cell: 310-292-1902 ConocoPhillips Rides Oil Prices To Record Earnings As Consumers Face Soaring Costs at the Gas Pump First of Big Oil Giants To Report 2007 Profits Had Best 4th Quarter Ever Santa Monica, CA — ConocoPhillips reported a 37 percent increase in [...]
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Another Big Oil U Warning Issued
Monday, January 21, 2008
1-21-08 by simpson The prestigious Center for Science in the Public Interest has joined us in warning of the dangers Big Oil money poses to university research. In a report issued today CSPI says American universities may be jeopardizing their academic integrity by giving oil, gas, and other polluting industries unprecedented influence over the [...]
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Thursday, October 14, 2010
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