Big Oil Tries to Inspire Warm Gooey Feelings [1]
Submitted by Diane Farsetta [2] on
As ExxonMobil [3] breaks its own record to post the largest annual profit [4] by a U.S. company, the American Petroleum Institute [5] (API) is trying to tap some goodwill. At the Super Bowl U.S. football championship game, API is sponsoring "Kickoff to Rebuild," highlighting its work with Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit organization that promotes homeownership. API and Rebuilding Together are launching an "Energy Efficient Homes Initiative," which aims "to incorporate energy-efficiency measures in the more than 9,000 homes revitalized each year by Rebuilding Together." API has been battling the oil industry [6]'s negative public image for years, with increased outreach to journalists [7] and bloggers [8]. In related news, O'Dwyer's [9] reports that Saudi Arabia's oil ministry paid the PR firm Hill & Knowlton [10] $1 million, to promote OPEC [11]'s "message of hope and reassurance" around its November 2007 summit in Riyadh.