But with oil it was different. People stopped. They talked. They were intrigued and passionate and intelligent and a little angry. They understood that oil companies simply deliver a product. Yet — and I think this has to do with their size and profit — people often expected something more from them than they did of other large industries. A gallon of milk costs more than a gallon of gas, but it doesn’t cause global warming. And we don’t need 85 million barrels of it a day.

Image Credit... Stephen Doyle

In short, they knew the power of an oil company executive. And they wanted leaders.

After a day and a half of interviews, we had enough footage for five commercials. They were raw and emotional. The things people said were sometimes none-too-flattering to BP or the industry. At the end of each spot, we put up a list of what BP was doing in terms of cleaner fuels, alternative forms of energy, recognizing global warming and reducing their own emissions; stuff you didn’t hear from an oil company. Before the “beyond petroleum” tagline, we added, “It’s a start.”

We did print ads too. The same way. Real people, real quotes as headlines that challenged BP and the industry. No oil company — few companies at all — had ever spoken like this, confronting the debate so frankly.

They liked it.

Advertising is a funny business. You get to help shape the personalities of huge companies. Most often it’s for cellphone service or credit cards or fast food or paper towels. Rarely are you faced with whether you “believe” in a product or service. This was different. This was serious. I believed wholeheartedly in BP’s message, that we could go — or at least work toward going — beyond petroleum.

The campaign first appeared a few days before Sept. 11, 2001. It was shelved for a long time. Then relaunched. In that time, I moved on to other assignments and later another agency.

The campaign is running again. I heard that the interviewees are prescreened now, which is too bad. And last week, I heard that the pipeline in Prudhoe Bay is corroded and leaking. The company that claims to be beyond petroleum shut down a pipeline that serves up 400,000 barrels of petroleum a day. Maybe Coca-Cola’s new line should be “It’s good for your teeth.”

I read too that the energy expert Daniel Yergin claimed last week that “new analysis of oil-industry activity points to a considerable growth in the capacity to produce oil in the years ahead.” It seems unlikely that anyone’s going to push hard to change our energy future.