The Gulf Coast Oil Spill: Views from the US and Europe

Welcome to the ninth issue of the TransAtlantic Masters (TAM) Program's on-line journal, TransAtlantic Perspectives. The goal of this on-line publication is to draw upon the unique qualifications of TAM students and to use the TAM website to provide information for scholars, students, and others interested in transatlantic relations.

Our 2010 issue examines student perspectives on the transatlantic dimensions of the Deepwater Horizon Gulf Coast oil spill. The US media focused a great deal of attention on BP's rig explosion and subsequent oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico this past spring and summer. As the crude was finally contained, we asked the TAM students to comment on the disaster's effect on transatlantic relations and on the ways in which Europeans grappled with the oil spill's ramifications. Though the three essays contained in this volume highlight similar details, they analyze events differently and reach unique types of conclusions as they comment on what the Gulf Coast oil leak means for the US and for European nations. The similarities and differences found within these essays make for a thought-provoking read.

A recent New York Times article notes: "Whether the four-month effort to kill [the leaking Gulf-coast well] was a remarkable feat of engineering performed under near-impossible circumstances or a stumbling exercise in trial and error that took longer than it should have will be debated for some time." The following essays form a part of this important inquiry. Authors Jenni Blackwell and Andrea Delgado spent the summer on opposite sides of the Atlantic; Jenni was in New York and Andrea was in Bath, UK. Ms. Blackwell and Ms. Delgado took advantage of their locations and examined the media's treatment of the spill as well as the public reaction to it in the UK and the US. Their jointly-authored essay analyzes the oil spill's impact on public sentiment in the Britain and America and investigates the strength of the US-UK relationship in the spill's aftermath. Ivo Dimitrov wrote his text in Bulgaria. He draws attention to institutional differences between the US and the EU and explains how these differences played a role in the BP disaster. He demonstrates how differing cultural and political norms can impede transatlantic cooperation. Finally, Kimberly Frank writes from Paris and points to the Jones Act as an obstacle to US and European aid efforts. Ms. Frank highlights divisions both within the US and across the Atlantic which have created challenges to the Gulf Coast oil spill clean-up efforts. All of the essays pick up on common trends and communicate insightful observations about their relevance to transatlantic relations.

I’m pleased to welcome you to this most recent volume of TAM’s on-line journal.  Please read on and send your comments to tam@unc.edu