Ohio State student activists took a page out of the Occupy playbook when they “mic checked” a panel discussion on shale drilling hosted by the the Subsurface Energy Research Center (SERC) at the Ohio Union on November 18th. The panel, which was made up of several industry experts, a state official and an environmental advocate, was intended to provide information on the oil and gas industry’s new, and extensive, horizontal hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) initiatives in Ohio. Approximately 10 minutes into the event, over thirty-five students from OSU and around the state interrupted state geologist Larry Wickstrom to deliver a message of their own to an audience of students, faculty, and industry professionals. Here is what they had to say (transcript below): Around the nation, activists are hijacking public forums to spread their message. The mic check tactic grew out...
