Stuff.co.nz pranked into believing oil company was donating polar bear to Auckland Zoo – ouch

15
7

The graduate children Stuff are reliant on to staff the online fiasco that is stuff.co.nz have been pranked, and pranked hard. My guess is this will get taken down as soon as they realize they’ve been pranked

Screen Shot 2013-08-22 at 5.17.21 PM

Auckland Zoo to welcome polar bear

A bear cub is being given to Auckland by oil giants Gazprom and Royal Dutch Shell, which are clearing the bears out from the Artic so they can drill for oil.

The cub will come from Gazprom’s Prirazlomnoye oil fields.

The oil company said it had biologists and naturists “currently working to identify the right bear for particular conditions” in New Zealand.

It said it was likely the cub would be hand-nurtured under the supervision of Shell scientists until it was ready for transport.

Gazprom and Shell are relocating polar bears to 10 cities around the world.

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

It is part of their business partnership to drill for oil in the Russian Arctic.

The first polar bear was given to the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam.

Although the bears are being forcibly cleared in the hunt for oil, Gazprom put a patriotic spin on the exercise.

“The polar bear is a symbol of strength and purity,” said Timur Grigolyuk, director of strategic partnerships for Gazprom, Russia’s largest gas company.

“Like Russian oil and gas, she is a precious resource that we can share with all the world.

“Children are very happy with bears, and we want Auckland to have maximum happiness.”

Moving polar bears made sense because they had become a problem in the Arctic, Grigolyuk said.

Shell public relations officer Thijs Renner said: “Unlocking the Arctic’s resources is a tremendous challenge and one we are honoured to share with Gazprom. Our combined experience and innovation is set to produce unprecedented returns.”

…I’m still laughing so hard. How could they not realize that was a total hoax?

Like ‘Stuff Nation’, this is an epic fail.

15 COMMENTS

    • Ahh, yes. “Our news, today”. That 90% of journalism is retyping public relations releases would be a revelation to most people. That’s the tears amidst the laughter.

      Think I might create an account on stuff just so I can link to this page to rebutt every stupid prop piece they allow comments on.

  1. Yep it’s gone.. funny as, cheers.

    They haven’t made the connection between fossil fuels and Climate Change as yet.. maybe in another century.. dinosaurs..

    • I dont know what is so funny…the fact that this was actually accepted as fact shows how demented this world has become….

      • I agree, it is sad…polar bears are in huge trouble, maybe it would be funny if it wasn’t about oil and polar bears, which is a bit close to the bone…. Maybe hoax aside all anyone can do these days is hysterically laugh at this demented world all right. All those snails in ice cream containers in the fridge which were killed was like a sick hoax.

  2. The move of the oil company to donate polar bears to zoos is a strategic move to continue with the oil drilling and production activities in the identified areas, without stirring a hornet’s nest by alleviating concerns of animal lovers and environmentalists.

Comments are closed.