by Kevin Mathews From Care2

What happened to an anti-Keystone Pipeline ad slated to air during President Barack’s Tonight Show appearance? That’s a question environmental groups are asking after NBC’s last minute decision to reject the commercial, leaving some to speculate about what role oil companies played in banishing the ad from the airwaves.

According to NextGen Climate Action, the group that created and paid for the ad, the commercial was submitted early and met all of the guideline standards. However, local affiliate WRC/NBC in Washington waited until the evening of the show to tell the organization it would not be airing the commercial after all. Now, NextGen is challenging WRC/NBC to furnish a sworn affidavit that big oil companies did not impact the station’s choice to drop the ad.

“Given that we complied with the station’s process, the fact that the ad is accurate in exposing TransCanada’s representation regarding the Keystone Pipeline and WRC/NBC’s history of taking advertising petro-dollars, something simply does not smell right here,” said Executive Director of NextGen Climate Action, Tom Adams. “The public deserves to know whether WRC/NBC is censoring this ad because of actions by TransCanada or the fossil fuel industry’s $153 million in television ad spending.”

To view NextGen Climate Action’s Rejected Ad go to: http://www.care2.com/causes/why-was-an-anti-keystone-pipeline-ad-censored.html

The commercial depicts a greedy and self-satisfied oil tycoon cackling at the lies told to the American public to persuade them to support the Keystone Pipeline. Citations appear at the bottom of the screen to validate the claims as they are made. Among the debunked myths are that U.S. gasoline prices will decrease and the pipeline will stop the country’s dependency on foreign oil. In truth, Consumer Watchdog anticipates the pipeline will cause gas prices to increase, while TransCanada refuses to pledge to keep the oil in the U.S.

The Keystone Pipeline was not only ignored during the commercial segments, but during Jay Leno’s interview, as well. Instead, the President discussed the economy, terrorist threats, Trayvon Martin, the NSA, diplomatic relations with Russia and broccoli.

Despite having been predominately ambiguous about the Keystone Pipeline over the past year, Obama has been more critical of TransCanada’s massive project in recent weeks, questioning its actual benefits to the American economy and claiming that the environmental impact needs to be taken into account.

Hopefully, NBC will offer some sort of explanation as to why it rejected an ad that challenged the oil industry. Whether big oil specifically forbad the commercial from airing or NBC was afraid to air a spot that vilified a major sponsor, the fact that pro-environment messages are being discarded in favor of potential profits signifies that major media outlets are tools for the rich, not the masses.

For more on this story go to:

http://www.care2.com/causes/why-was-an-anti-keystone-pipeline-ad-censored.html