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Pandora's False Promises

Pandora's Promise, is a new pro-nuclear propaganda documentary released theatrically in the US in July 2013. It is funded in part by individuals with a vested interest in seeing the development of new reactors and is seemingly a vehicle by which to raise the profile of the anti-environmental Oakland think tank, The Breakthrough Institute, whose personnel feature prominently in the film. Despite the film's premise and early claim that it features "a growing number of leading former anti-nuclear activists" who now support nuclear energy, no one in the film ever led the anti-nuclear movement. Nor was any credible, independent scientific or medical professional with expertise in the areas covered in the film consulted or featured. Beyond Nuclear has bird-dogged the film from the beginning, and has produced numerous critiques. We have also published a definitive report - Pandora's False Promises: Busting the pro-nuclear propaganda - and a two-page synopsis. These documents address virtually all of the myths, lies and omissions typically found in pro-nuclear rhetoric and are intended to address these long after Pandora's Promise fades into deserved oblivion.

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Entries by admin (43)

Tuesday
Apr302013

CNN keeps things "dishonest" by purchasing propaganda film

"Keeping them honest" is apparently not a mantra adopted by CNN Films, which has acquired the domestic television rights for Pandora's Promise. The department declares in its press release announcing the purchase, that, "The atomic bomb and accidents at Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima bring to mind apocalyptic disasters, but the science and experience since suggest that long-held fears about nuclear power may be wrong." We are not sure what "science" or "experience" they are looking at, but evidently tens to hundreds of thousands of avoidable cancer deaths and countless more illnesses, birth defects and survivable but serious sicknesses as a result of Chernobyl do not constitute "disaster" at CNN. As for Fukushima, if there was serious attention paid to credible science by the film's protagonists, they could not possibly pronounce on the consequences of that disaster since the cancers it will trigger among exposed populations will take decades to manifest. The press have lapped up the CNN press release, repeating the rather dubious contention that the film's protagonists "have put their careers in jeopardy to tout the societal benefits of nuclear energy." That certainly should be the outcome. Perhaps we can all make it so!


Tuesday
Apr302013

More back-pedaling as Stone tones down the rhetoric in newly-released trailer

After pulling its earlier inflammatory trailer (the first of the "vanishing Pandoras") - that included Michael Shellenberger suggesting those who believed the high predictions of Chernobyl-caused fatalities had fallen prey to a vast "conspiracy" and claims by Mark Lynas that Chernobyl had harmed almost no one; there were no increased cancer indences among liquidators and so on; and that deliberately attempted to ridicule anti-nuclear activists; director Robert Stone has released a new, toned-down trailer. This one endeavors to make Pandora's Promise sound less like the propaganda piece it is and more "balanced" and rational. It remains to be seen whether the aforementioned Chernobyl health references by Shellenberger and Lynas - whose content has been totally discredited even by those who still espouse more conservative Chernobyl cancer predictions - remain in the film, which may have been re-cut since its Sundance debut. The new trailer appears on the website of Rolling Stone magazine with an accompanying blurb that fails to challenge the film's thesis. However, we have responded in the comments section below the Rolling Stone promo - which craftily includes links to pages which document to reckless continued use of the Fukushima-style reactors in the US; and the litany of near-misses at US reactors.

Wednesday
Apr172013

And another Pandora perdita...

The description of Pandora's Promise is no longer located at Robert Stone Productions. Following the original link one is re-directed to the new version of the Pandora's Promise  website where the wording has now been modified (it does not open with Safari). However, we have captured the original, erroneous claim that the film features "leading former anti-nuclear activists," which can now be found here.

Wednesday
Apr172013

More deletions from the official Pandora's Promise website

The original "director's note" by Robert Stone on his Pandora's Promise website has been removed. It used to be here. This follows an intriguing trend - see posts below - of what we term the "vanishing Pandoras." Could it be that Stone was taking some heat for his so-called "Ahah moment" which was completely inaccurate? We captured the article as a PDF so you can still read the original, here.

Wednesday
Apr102013

Another case of a vanishing Pandora

Why do Pandora plugs keep vanishing? The latest was a blatant puff piece guest blog on Scientific American's website by nuclear power booster David Ropeik. Ropeik is of course another of The Breakthrough Institute's cronies (which he fessed up to on the Blog) - although his Breakthrough page seems also to have disappeared! But he still has a URL on the Insitute's site: http://thebreakthrough.org/index.php/site/author-tag/David-Ropeik. The Breakthrough Institute is promoting the film and its personnel feature heavily in it.

Ropeik's piece was so full of holes, suppression of facts and fallacies that just maybe SA had the good sense to pull it. After all, should a fellow of the Breakthrough Institute be reviewing a film featuring its president, Michael Shellenberger, and which is a vehicle for the Institute's agenda?

Up for a day there was just time for Beyond Nuclear to post an initial rebuttal before the article disappeared. Titled, Will "Pandora's Promise" Start A New Environmental Movement FOR Nuclear Power? it was found at this URL. http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/04/09/will-pandoras-promise-start-a-new-environmental-movement-for-nuclear-power/