For Immediate Release: Contact:
February 9, 2006 Orli Cotel
(415)977-5627
Megan Lewis
(202)548-6587
SIERRA CLUB TELEVISION SERIES DOCUMENTS THE HUMAN COSTS OF
EXXONMOBIL'S GREED
In a Year of Record Profits, ExxonMobil Still Won't Compensate
Fishermen
San Francisco, CA - The second episode of the Sierra Club's new
television series tells the story of the Alaska fishermen whose
livelihoods were destroyed by the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill, and who
are still waiting for compensation from the company. "The Day the
Water Died" will air Thursday, February 9 at 8:30 PM EST/PST on Link
TV, and will be available for viewing and download at
www.sierraclubtv.org.
The episode takes viewers to the still economically and emotionally
afflicted fishing town of Cordova, Alaska 16 years after the Exxon
Valdez disaster, where citizens are fighting to hold Exxon to their
word. Thousands of plaintiffs have died while waiting for ExxonMobil
to pay punitive damages which amount to small change for the company.
In January, ExxonMobil announced a record-breaking annual profit,
making it the most profitable corporation in American history. But
despite its wealth, the world's largest oil company has yet to pay a
single penny in the damages owed to the Alaskan fishermen. After a
January 27 hearing at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,
Cordova’s fishermen are awaiting a decision about whether the 30,000
plaintiffs affected by the spill will get the $4.5 billion in
punitive damages that was awarded to them- but never paid.
"Exxon may have done a poor job of hiring its tanker skippers, but it
did a great PR job of making promises after the disaster," said Carl
Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club. "The corporate giant
also had lawyers even slicker than the oil it had spilled."
"Sierra Club Chronicles" is a monthly series by award-winning
filmmaker Robert Greenwald ("Outfoxed," "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of
Low Price"). Produced by Greenwald’s Brave New Films in association
with Sierra Club Productions, and hosted by Daryl Hannah, the series
captures seven David vs. Goliath stories: the dramatic efforts of
committed individuals across the country working to protect the
health of their environment and communities.
The next episode, airing March 9, follows the lives of people who
have suffered alarming health effects caused by exposure to the high
levels of toxic dioxin and other heavy metals released into the air
and water by the DuPont plant in DeLisle, Mississippi. We follow as
they cope with their own terminal illnesses and those of their family
members, and as they testify in a lawsuit against DuPont- some of
them with only months to live. Summaries of all seven episodes and
tips for planning a house party are available at www.sierraclubtv.org
.
One new episode will premiere the second Thursday of each month at
8:30 PM Eastern and Pacific through July 2006. Link TV is on DIRECTV
channel 375 and Dish Network channel 9410. Emmy Award winner Molly
O'Brien co-executive produces and Richard Ray Pérez serves as
director and supervising producer. Kim Haddow and Adrienne Bramhall
oversee the production for Sierra Club.
"Sierra Club Chronicles" is made possible by the generous support of
the Ford Foundation.
About Sierra Club Productions
Emmy Award-winning Sierra Club Productions is a division of the
Sierra Club, which is the oldest, largest, and most influential
grassroots environmental organization in America, with more than
750,000 members nationwide. Sierra Club Productions develops and
produces dramatic and non-fiction programming for television and film
that reflects the Sierra Club belief that every person is connected
to, inspired by and responsible for the natural world. (
www.sierraclub.org/scp)
About Brave New Films
Brave New Films is the new media company from Robert Greenwald, the
award-winning producer of over 60 films, and the director of the 2
recent documentaries, "Wal-Mart: the High Cost of Low Price" and
"Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism." A pioneer in 21st
century activism, Greenwald's films provide the centerpiece for
guerilla campaigns designed to break through noisy news cycles.
By utilizing the latest technologies, collaborating with numerous
activist groups, and building a growing network of dedicated
volunteer field producers, Brave New Films is producing and
distributing entertaining and engaging films, television, radio,
music, books and blogs outside the corporate system, building
essential media infrastructure for long-term social progress. (
www.bravenewfilms.org)
About Link TV
Link TV is a non-commercial, independent television network available
in more than 26 million U.S. homes on DIRECTV channel 375 and DISH
Network channel 9410. The 24-hour programming is a mix of
documentaries, international news, foreign films and the best of
World Music. The network recently received the first satellite-only
Peabody Award for MOSAIC: World News from the Middle East, a daily
news show featuring English translations of national television
reports from more than 24 countries in the Middle East. Select Link
TV programs are streamed on the Internet at www.linktv.org. Link TV
is operated by Link Media, Inc., a California non-profit
organization, with production studios in San Francisco, New York and
Washington, DC.
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