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Fact Check: Truths and Myths in Matt Damon’s Anti-Fracking Film ‘Promised Land’

Jan. 9, 2013 2:43pm Liz Klimas

(Editor’s Note: Potential movie spoilers below)

Matt Damon’s film “Promised Land,” which is considered by most to be an anti-fracking statement set in a fictional tale, was criticized by the pro-fracking community long before its debut. But now that it has been released, it still seems to be seeing less than favorable reviews and a poor box office showing, and recent fact checks are calling out some elements of the film as well.

Fact Checks Look Into Matt Damons Anti Fracking Film Promised Land

Matt Damon and John Krazinski created and co-star in “Promised Land,” which is in most theaters now. (Photo: Promised Land/Focus Features)

One of the recent fact checks of the movie comes from Steve Maley for the conservative website the Red State. Maley takes issue with the fact that the filmmakers didn’t look into some of the actual local laws that apply to fracking in Pennsylvania where the movie is based. Maley wrote:

We see Damon/Butler negotiating with a landowner, signing him to a lease for $2,000 per acre and an “8% share of the profits”, knowing that his company is willing to pay $5,000 and 18%.

This highly misleading exchange is wrong on multiple levels. A royalty paid to a landowner under an oil and gas lease is a non-cost bearing share of a well’s gross revenue, not “profit”. Hollywood types know the difference between “a percentage of the net” and “a percentage of the gross”; the latter is a lot more valuable, and is risk-free to the owner. Also, 12.5% royalty is the minimum permissible rate under Pennsylvania law [58 PA. STAT. § 33, pdf link]. In can be double that, or more.

[...]

I found a 20-page pdf file from the Penn State Cooperative Extension Service entitled Natural Gas Exploration, A Landowner’s Guide to Leasing Land in Pennsylvania. It explains, in very clear layman’s language, the terms and provisions of an oil and gas lease, the contract that dictates the relationship between the operating company and the landowner. It also advises the landowner to engage an attorney (you can find one of those on Google). Maybe screenwriters Damon and John Krasinski should have read it, so they could understand 1) that dealing with an energy company is not a one-way negotiation, and 2) leases cannot contain provisions preventing the landowner from “talking about it in court”.

Maley also calls out the concerns in the movie over groundwater contamination and fracking. Just last year, the EPA and other scientists said these concerns are unfounded and not scientifically based. A new bit of research to tag the water, which is pumped into shale rock to extract natural gas, with DNA and trace these tags to see if it does lead to groundwater contamination shows though that many still question fracking’s safety.

American Public Media’s Marketplace also has a fact check of the movie. Here are a couple of the things that it looked into and found:

Fracking and dead cows, really? Yes, it is true. Cows have died according to a Cornell study tallying reports of human and animal ailments near drill sites. Direct exposure to hydraulic fracturing fluid occurred in two cases: in one, a worker shut down a chemical blender during the fracturing process, allowing the release of fracturing fluids into an adjacent cow pasture, killing 17 cows in one hour; the other was a result of a defective valve on a fracturing fluid tank, which caused hundreds of barrels of hydraulic fracturing fluid to leak into a pasture where goats were exposed and suffered from reproductive problems over the following two years.

Do natural gas landmen push this hard? Not that I’ve heard. I spoke to several landmen in the gas industry, who say they’re paid daily rates rather than commission. In other words, they get paid whether the landowner signs a lease or not.

Marketplace also addressed flammable water. It pointed out that some water supplies experienced methane bubbling up, but also that the industry has frequently cited natural causes of flammable water as well. In fact, the documentary film FrackNation, which seeks to tell the truth about fracking and is a response to what it considers “lies” told in Gasland, has taken out billboards reminding people of natural burning springs. Just this month, FrackNation sponsored one of these billboards, which called out Matt Damon directly, in New York.

Listen to the Marketplace podcast:

The Marcellus Shale Coalition released this statement with regard to “Promised Land” last week:

This film is purely a work of fiction and is not reflective of the work our industry undertakes, all done within an aggressive and effective regulatory framework. Our focus remains on creating even more American jobs, safely producing our abundant, clean- burning, domestic natural gas resources, revitalizing rural communities and our nation’s manufacturing base, and most importantly, doing it in a way that is safe. We live and raise our families in these communities, and have an unmatched commitment to protecting our air, water and environment.

While “Promised Land” continues to show in theaters, “FrackNation” made its premiers in New York City and Los Angeles this week. It will premier to the public on Jan. 22 on Mark Cuban’s AXS.tv.

Here’s a trailer for “FrackNation”:

Watch “Promised Land’s” trailer:

In CONTROL, Glenn Beck presents a passionate, fact-based case for guns that reveals why gun control isn’t really about controlling guns at all; it’s about controlling us. Find out more HERE.

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Comments (44)

bankerpapaw
Posted on January 10, 2013 at 10:50am
Matt Damon. I am putting him in the anti-American Hollywood crowd along with Hugo’s buddies, Danny
Glover and Senn Penn. I do not intend to see any more of his movies.

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LIBERTARIAN_CONSPIRATOR
Posted on January 10, 2013 at 2:09am
HOLLYWOOD=SENSATIONALISM! What else is new? These people will sign on for anything to get a paycheck, including getting profits from so called eco/green companies…can we say Al Gore? I don’t waste my money on going to movies that spew this crap or seeing films with those actors that contribute financially or promote bs causes.

So, when are we going to start saving the millions of birds and bats that are being killed all over the planet from Wind Farms? Matt? Anyone? Thought so.

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- rp454
  Posted on January 10, 2013 at 2:24pm
  That would be Al Gorejazeera now.
  
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Magyar
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 9:15pm
Matt Damon is the myth and a legend in his OWN mind.

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TexOkie
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 8:23pm
There is no faster way for an economy to prosper than through the use of cheap abundant energy. The elite of the left and the progressive environmentalists retain power and influence through policy intended to keep the poor, poor. If the lower class is allowed to rise through prosperity then the elite would have no one to rule over.

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tckid17
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 6:39pm
Hollywood Elite dont want cheaper oil because of all the poor people on the road.

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CommonSenseTalk
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 6:23pm
Maybe fracking is bad, maybe its not. We need energy in America and as long as the government keeps us from drilling for oil where oil is we will die as a country. Why can’t we drill in Alaska where America purchased land to drill for oil? Why can’t we drill off the coast? Cuba can drill miles from Florida but no American company can drill there? Do you think a Russian oil rig will care about the fish? How about a China drilling rig? Do you think they care about spilling oil into the waters around America?

Lets face it until Americans understand that the government causes more problems then it solves we will get nowhere. Hollywood just wants to make money from anything it can, and spit in your face as they do it.

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Really2012
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 5:04pm
I saw the movie because I liked Matt Damon in the Bourne series as Jason Bourne. What I got was Jason Bourne dropping the f-bomb multiple times and then getting pounded in the face. Great entertainment. Actors should stick to what they are good at…

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bugly64
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:49pm
I liked Matt Damon in the Bourne series, but his political hippy movies stink. His best role ever was when he played himself in Team America: world police.

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- amtsoundsmith
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 6:52pm
  You should see Matt in Team America: World Police. I think you’d like it.
  
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Outfitr
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:22pm
Hollywooders, they don’t build, make, clean, help, labor, produce anything..they pretend to be someone else….for a living. They are members of the most dysfunctional group of humans on the planet. And we’re suppose to look to them for guidance???

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- JRook
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:34pm
  Perhaps but they are clearly better that individuals who run Political Action Committees and spend $millions of dollars promoting lies instead of citizenship. And they are certainly above lobbyists who are paid $millions by large corporations and the wealthy so they can continue to use the federal government as an ATM and promote regulations that increase barriers to entry and real competition.
  
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- deskjockey
  Posted on January 10, 2013 at 9:51am
  Wow JRook, you got ‘em all in there. All the evil people. The wealthy, the corporations. Go back to Media Matters. on this site we call them Americans.
  
  Report this comment
- toto
  Posted on May 12, 2013 at 10:44am
  Have always thought it crazy that some people give credibility to people that can sing or dance, or that perpetually play act, like children that have never grown out of pretending to be someone else. When they are not behind the camera, they are pretending to be important.
  
  Report this comment
LeaveMeBe
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:55pm
The state of Pennsylvania is far behind most states when it comes to oil and gas. First off a lawyer is the last thing you need unless you’re leasing mass amounts of acreage. If all you have is a couple of acres you’ll burn through the bonus paying for a lawyer. Except for Pennsylvania it is better not to lease anything under ten acres because of something called force pooling and the way units are created. Pennsylvania is a drainage state whereas Louisiana is a force pooling state. The difference is in Pennsylvania I can drill along side your property and drain your minerals to the land next to to you and not have to pay you. Louisiana requires an oil and gas company to pool you into a unit and pay you your fair share. If you have under ten acres it is better not to lease and to be force pooled as a “Working Interest” owner versus a “Royalty Owner”, which is why sometimes one acre lots can lease for up to $5000 an acre and large acreage leases at $2500. The only thing you need to know are: Depth clause (surface to top of producing zone; bottom of zone to center of earth), Pugh Clause (only for large acres or multiple tracts), at the current rates ask $2000 for every year the lease is in effect (not a normal request), never accept anything under 20% royalty, six month shut-in clause (no wiggle room on this), continuous operations (for large tracts). If all you have is 1 acre or less and don’t live in a drainage state, don’t lease, be force pooled and become a Working

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hauschild
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:48pm
You know what I am most proud of? The last movie I went to see in a movie theater was 2016. Prior to that, it was Passion of the Christ and prior to that, I can’t remember, but I think it was Striptease.

You people have just got to STOP supporting this crap. I mean, movies these days are simply awful in every regard.

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- OniKaze
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:18pm
  You saw “Striptease” In Theaters?
  
  Wow, sorry man, I bet you REALLY wanted that (Then $5) back…. And “Passsion of the Christ”?? That is like going to see Titanic in theaters… WHY, YOU KNOW HOW IT ENDS!!!
  
  Poor Guy… I wish I could help you get your $20 back from Hollywood, You clearly deserve it…
  
  Report this comment
- Cesium
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 5:58pm
  The sequel to the Passion of the Christ is Prometheus. Ahh fiction
  
  Report this comment
GetPastPolitics
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:46pm
From page 16 of the Cornell report (http://www.psehealthyenergy.org/data/Bamberger_Oswald_NS22_in_press.pdf) cited: “The most striking finding of our investigations was the difficulty in obtaining definitive information on the link between hydrocarbon gas drilling and health effects.” Should that be cased close and go home????

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Lord_Frostwind
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:36pm
My Grandad had that same job. He would go and negotiate with the land owners for rights for drilling and laying down pipelines. Matt Damon’s character wouldn’t have stood a chance in that business, being pushy doesn’t get you very far, and when something goes wrong, you have to be on good terms with the people you made deals with. For instance, one of your trucks accidentally leaves a gate open on a ranch and they lose some cattle because of it, guess who’s **** is on the line?

I let crap like this get to me because every Hollywood inbred has made what the people I care about look evil. I’m really getting sick about “big oil,” and “evil police,” because I know how many of the facebook generation buy into this tripe. We say just stick to the facts, but it’s like yelling at a brick wall, people don’t want to listen or just don’t care.

Suppose I can take solace in the fact that this movie is doing terribly at the theaters. I guess Damon’s going to have to go act in a bunch of action movies to recoup his loses.

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kadster01
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:28pm
Shuddup and act! So sick and tired of dumbass celebrities thinking we care what they think!

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devote infidel
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:23pm
What a Joke this Tool is. Matt Damon!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUa5oHgYV2k

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Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:21pm
This anti-fracking film is nothing more than propaganda.

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- progressiveslayer
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:34pm
  That’s exactly what it is and I donated to the film fracknation to counter those global warming cultists.
  
  Report this comment
- naughtycal
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:35pm
  And it’s being backed by the middle eastern oil ……Who have the most to lose when Americans stop buy their product. How will little Osama Jr. fund his war on America with no American dollars coming in.
  
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- progressiveslayer
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:48pm
  The world will always need fossil fuels and this green energy is just BS designed to make a few people very rich.It’s all heavily subsidized and will never be viable,the warmer cultists just want us all living in the dark ages.
  
  Report this comment
- naughtycal
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:24pm
  PS,
  there will come a day if it isn’t here already when solar will be viable technology is alway progressing. That being said I’ll the government along with oil,gas and coal will suppress it to continue making billions.
  
  Report this comment
- Hannibal_32
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 5:07pm
  @NAUGHTYCAL – I think someone fracked the part of your brain that deals with grammar.
  
  Report this comment
- YOURSENSEI
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 8:16pm
  This is what you must know:
  
  Propaganda is a matter of opinion.
  
  It is so.
  
  Report this comment
wtd
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:21pm
Another recent video debunking of Gasland is available to view online for free: Truthland
In “Gasland,” New York City filmmaker Josh Fox tries to scare people about natural gas and hydraulic fracturing. It made one Pennsylvania mom who had wells planned on her land wonder what she was getting into. What would happen when she turned on the faucet? Would it be safe for her animals and kids?

Shelly — a teacher and farmer — needed to have the facts. So she took a trip and talked to experts from industry, environmental groups and universities, as well as people who can light their tap on fire. Nobody got paid — they were just asked to tell the truth.

Watch the movie to learn what it’s really like in the real Gasland. http://www.truthlandmovie.com/watch-movie/

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RaydocX
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:16pm
ask the North Vietnamese’s greatest asset, Jane Fonda what a movie can do when it chooses to ignore facts…

‘the China Syndrome’ freaked out the population in the 70′s and many believe helped to prevent more widespread use of nuclear power.

Now, it’s not without it’s problems, but when the Greens/ Libs want us free of the evil fossil fuel, the endless money being thrown at wind and to a lesser extent solar show both remain economic losers, ethanol drove corn prices beyond sustainable levels, and only small portions of the country can benefit from geothermal or hydroelectric energy, the latter of which also has enviornmental problems.

So ignoring history, Matt DAMon is going to ‘educate us’ with his perception of the situation, ignoring the facts, and with a smug or arrogant presumption borne of the Left that it is not a problem to ignore the facts that do not agree with your position.

Tragic, that we cannot learn from past mistakes, and are doomed to repeat history endlessly…

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- Lord_Frostwind
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:26pm
  All the solar freaks seem to ignore one of the biggest problems, well aside from less than stellar power production for the cost to produce, Rare Earth Elements. Required in solar (and actually a lot of modern electronics for that matter) and guess which country holds a near monopoly on producing those?
  
  We would simply go from being beholden from one region to another for our energy needs.
  
  Report this comment
- cornbread
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 4:25pm
  Exactly. This is not accidental either. It is purposeful. BOYCOTT THIS MOVIE and all of stinking hollywood. I only go see Christian movies and stuff like “2016″ and Ben Stein’s “no intelligence allowed”.
  
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lid.smoker
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:16pm
Replace frack with fart and maybe they have something.

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- bumfuzeled
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 6:13pm
  Way to chime in there Stewey
  
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progressiveslayer
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:10pm
The internet has crushed Hollywood’s monopoly of spewing their anti business propaganda. People can check for themselves what’s true and what’s BS and 99.9999% of what comes out of Hollywood is progressive propaganda BS.

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- BasketFullOfPuppies
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:19pm
  But, as we learned in the last election, not enough people are checking.
  
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- BODYBAG
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:23pm
  Hollyweird knuckleheads go political and bomb miserably.
  Same story every time.
  
  Hey Matt, you’re an entertainer — shut up and entertain somebody you prog tool.
  The formula is so obvious a chimpanzee could figure it out ——
  
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- progressiveslayer
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:31pm
  That’s true but the next depression followed by mass starvation will wake them up albeit too late but they will know true poverty, not the type that’s passed off as poverty here in the US today.
  
  Report this comment
- VoiceoftheMajority
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:48pm
  Basketfullofpuppies…Actually factchecking is why the election went the way it did. Where were you all of last year ?
  
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- YOURSENSEI
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 8:17pm
  Mr or Ms BODY BAG,
  
  This is what you must know:
  
  Chuck Woolery, Ted Nugent, Chuck Norris and Jon Voigt agree.
  
  It is so.
  
  Report this comment
jd9215
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:01pm
Matt Damon is typical of the Hollywood elite. A puppet that is dumber than mud,and regurgitates nonsense, simply because they are too stupid to see the facts that are readily available to them. Whether it be gun control or fracking.

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- Max jones
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:31pm
  Between necessary nightlife, casting calls, meetings with producers, directors, agents, attorneys, the “actor” has no opportunity to investigate what is true and what is propaganda driven hogwash.
  It is my opinion that these ‘celebrities’, we hear so much from, are actually serving progressive agendas without knowing the facts at all….What IS a publicist, anyway?
  
  Report this comment
- searcher619
  Posted on January 9, 2013 at 3:34pm
  Well not many Hollywood actors have much of an education. It’s pathetic that so many people idolize them.
  
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