Research Report

Ok, here are 10 sources to get me started with Project 3:

1. "Oil Production Fuels Earthquake Surge in Oklahoma" Audie Cornish.  Found on NPR.org on the podcast program All Things Considered.  Speaker is Tod Halihan.  
• Halihan is qualified because he is a Professor in Geology at Oklahoma State University (a good state university).  Hold Ph.D from University of Texas and specifically studies these fractured and karstic qualifiers.
• Source targets people who listen to the radio (specifically NPR) and are concerned about earthquakes in their area and what is causing them.  Certain details that point to a more general Oklahoma people audience are that the geologist breaks things down a lot for the people.  He also includes phrases like "we" (he is an Oklahoman).  The reporter also uses the inclusive word "us" when referring to himself and other concerned Oklahomans.
• Uses ethos in beginning when citing the guest speaker's credentials (professor of geology at Oklahoma State University).  Helps audience want to listen to him more and respect him.  They also present a counterargument ("..other researchers that say the link isn't strong enough...") and then successfully refute it.  This also gains admiration and trust from audience.
• Source is from National Public Radio Station (NPR) which is known to be a reliable news source, although they lean slightly more liberal, so I consider it a pretty good source.  The speaker also implies a possible solution to  the problem (finding a neutral source to evaluate oil company's work.  Have a nuetral referee).
2. "USGS: Fracking Disposal Wells are the Cause of Earthquakes in Oklahoma" M. Delatorre and La'Tasha Givens. KFOR. com.   
3.  "Boone Pickens Doesn't think Fracking Causes Earthquakes" Kevin Ogle. KFOR.com.  Interviewee: Boone Pickens.
• Not that Boone Pickens is necessarily "reliable", but he is one who plays a large part and has a big voice in the oil industry in Oklahoma (he's an oil tycoon), and therefore has strong opinions on fracking.  A second point is that his job depends on having oil in the state of Oklahoma, so he will potentially do anything to keep the oil flowing and his job intact.  (Both these points are shown in the original source itself)
• The audience the Pickens is addressing specifically the reporter, but also the people at a specific conference he was.  He see this is true when the reporter, Kevin Ogle, says that he interviewed him at the conference.
• The news cast starts out with ethos, establishing Pickens at the "billionaire oil trader".  Pickens image is also "improved" by showing how he still donates billions of dollars back to the town and university he came from.  This makes him more like a down to earth person rather than a cold and calculating oil trader.
• Nothing really points to an intended audience.  Although, I'd think that if people were there to listen to Boone Pickens they would probably be supporters of the oil business, an support his views.
• Likewise,  he isn't really trying to convince the audience of anything.  It is merely an interview where he is stating his opinions.  he does however claim that there is too much distance and time between the earthquake epicenters and the oil sites.    He also tells stories about his childhood in his small hometown of Oklahoma.  If anything this would make the people feel like he is a part of their community and that he wouldn't do anything that would hurt the people he came from.
• KFOR is a prevelant and one of the larger news stations in Oklahoma as it covers on of the larger populated areas: Oklahoma City.  Local news, such as this, will also give a more a more accurate depiction of how the local people view Pickens.
4. "Fracking  Bans are No Longer Allowed in Oklahoma"  by Emily Atkin.  Thinkprogress.org.
• Although she is writing for a liberal magazine, she seems to have her work published in several other magazines such as Law360, The New York Observer, and on WAMC Northeast Public Radio.  She also has her B.A in journalism from State University of New York at New Paltz. 
• She definitely leans towards the "non-fracking" side. This can be seen when she says that the new law was "a major blow for the city of Denton."  The fact that she puts parentheses around the word "reasonable" in the beginning, hints to the fact that she does not thing that this law is reasonable, which shows that it is meant to target a non-fracking audience.
• The source is trying to convince the people that the law is bad because there has been such a dramatic spike in earthquakes as the fracking has increased.   This is shown in the fact that she doesn't really add anything that might present it as "good" or develop much of a counterargument.
• She does show that it effects other cities outside of Oklahoma, which shows that the issue is pretty widespread.  The source was published last year in June, so it is a pretty recent article with up to date information.