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How Chevron turned the tables in Ecuador
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco's leading newspaper)
Posted: July 1st, 2013
http://blog.sfgate.com/energy/2013/06/28/how-chevron-turned-...
Faced with a $19 billion fine for polluting Ecuadors rainforest, Chevron Corp. has done a remarkable job of turning the tables on its foes. The lawyers who sued Chevron in Ecuador, winning that eye-popping judgment, have come under non-stop attack from the oil company. Chevron has hauled them into court in New York, accusing them of fraud and extortion. The company has gone after Ecuadors judicial system as well, claiming judges there conspired with the other side. That aggressive strategy has worked wonders, putting Chevrons opponents on the defensive and convincing many people that the Ecuador suit is a sham. And you can trace much of that strategy back to a 2008 memo by San Franciscos master of crisis communications, Sam Singer. In October of 2008, he sent Chevron spokesman Kent Robertson a four-page memo outlining steps the company could take to change public perceptions of the Ecuador lawsuit. Singer recommended going on the offensive. The company should portray Ecuadors court system as corrupt, with collusion between judges and the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Pointing out the leftward tilt of Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa wouldnt hurt. And Singer recommended counter attacks on the plaintiffs and their legal team, particularly lead lawyer Steven Donziger. Bear in mind that the memo was written more than two years before the Ecuadoran judge presiding over the lawsuit ruled against Chevron, in February of 2011. Some of Singers recommendations didnt fly. For example, he suggested portraying Ecuador as the next major threat to America. But the company took much of his advice to heart.
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