Little Black Lies

Corporate & Political Spin in the Global War for Oil

By (author): Jeff Gailus
ISBN 9781926855684
Hardcover | Publication Date: October 1, 2012
Book Dimensions: 4.75 in x 7 in
192 Pages
$16.95 CAD

About the Book

Beginning in 1967 and for just over 30 years, the oil industry toiled in the relative obscurity of Northern Alberta as machines peeled away earth and boreal forest to exhume what has now become one of humanity’s most precious and contentious resources: bitumen. As the years passed, the bitumen mines sprawled, poisonous tailings ponds spread, toxins polluted the environment, cancer reared its head downstream and the price of petroleum soared beyond all expectations.

As plans continue to build the Keystone and Northern Gateway pipelines, a growing number of scientists, journalists, First Nations and environmentalists are fighting to raise the alarm about the implications and propaganda surrounding the world’s largest energy project.

In his second RMB Manifesto, Jeff Gailus dissects the global war on truth that has come to define the battle for oil. It is a battle fought not with bullets and bombs but with a dark web of Little Black Lies that poses a threat not only to environmental and human health, but to our moral and social well-being.

About the Author(s)

Jeff Gailus has been writing about the intersection of science, nature and culture for over 15 years. His poignant journalism and commitment to conservation have allowed him to work with numerous non-profit organizations, including the Alberta Ecotrust Foundation, David Suzuki Foundation, Natural Resources Defence Council and the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative. Jeff has earned a Doris Duke Conservation Fellowship, a Story of the Year award from the Associated Collegiate Press, and numerous shortlistings and honourable mentions for his magazine writing, as well as Canada Council for the Arts and Alberta Foundation for the Arts grants to work on an environmental history of the Great Plains grizzly. He has taught writing at the University of Oregon and the University of Montana and has led university field courses for the Wild Rockies Field Institute and Wildlands Studies. Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Jeff currently resides in Missoula, Montana. His first book in the RMB Manifesto series was The Grizzly Manifesto: In Defence of the Great Bear (RMB, 2010).