The truth behind the greatest environmental disaster in U.S. history In 2005, fifteen workers were killed when BP's Texas City Refinery exploded. In 2006, corroded pipes owned by BP led to an oil spill in Alaska. Now, in 2010, eleven men drilling for BP were killed in the blowout of the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico.
What's next? In In Too Deep: BP and the Drilling Race That Took it Down, Stanley Reed?a journalist who has covered BP for over a decade?and investigative reporter Alison Fitzgerald answer not only that question, but also examine why these disasters happen to BP so much more than other large oil companies.
- Places the blame on a corporate culture created by former BP CEO John Browne who was forced to resign in 2007 after he lied in court documents in a case involving his gay lover
- Details a BP built on risk-taking and cost-cutting
- Examines the past, present, and future of BP
In August 2010, BP successfully "killed" the company's damaged deepwater well. But, the environmental fallout and public relations campaign to rebuild the brand are just beginning. In Too Deep details why BP, why now, and what's next for this oil giant.
"In Too Deep is the story of a corporate culture gone wrong. Reed and Fitzgerald have dug deep and come up with a cautionary tale that is also a cracking good yarn."
-Evan Thomas, Contributing Editor, Newsweek
"The touchstone account of the greatest environmental disaster of modern times. These seasoned reporters have produced a gripping, highly readable account of BP's corporate culture and how it led to the Gulf of Mexico disaster. In Too Deep is a brilliant piece of reporting and a serious work of political economy."
-Kai Bird, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, coauthor, American Prometheus, and author, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate
"Stanley Reed is one of the most thoughtful and informed business journalists in the international community, and what's more, always a pleasure to read."
-Victor Navasky, publisher emeritus, The Nation, George T. Delacorte Professor, Columbia University
"A masterly job of taking the reader behind the scenes to understand how and why the Deepwater Horizon blew up and the role of BP in the disaster. Paced almost as swiftly as events unfolded, the book takes us from the floor of the Gulf to the boardrooms in London and Washington to the sands of the Middle East. Every person who has grieved for the workers lost in the explosion or felt a pang of horror at the volumes of crude spilled into the ocean will appreciate how skillfully the authors have explained the event. Truth turns out to be more exciting, and better reading, than fiction."
-Doron Levin, contributor, Fortune, and author, Behind the Wheel at Chrysler and Irreconcilable Differences
"From the macho world of offshore oil drilling to the rarified world of Wimbledon tennis matches and Mayfair drinks parties, In Too Deep brings a uniquely deep, trans-Atlantic perspective to the Gulf of Mexico tragedy. Reed and Fitzgerald have teamed up to produce what may become a classic case study of a corporate culture gone wrong."
-Julia Flynn Siler, author of the New York Times bestseller, The House of Mondavi, and the forthcoming Lost Kingdom
"Were this a work of fiction, readers would be spellbound. Since it's reality, In Too Deep is essential to demanding the truth from leaders at all levels in business, government, and everywhere else."
-John Hofmeister, former President, Shell Oil Company, and author, Why We Hate the Oil Companies
