(If you would like to complain about this ad, contact Miles Cathey, Director of Local Sales, mcathey@KHOU.com).
Dear KHOU/Channel 11:
I am a Houston resident and longtime viewer of Channel 11. Last night I saw a commercial which at best could be called misleading and at worst could be called a blatant lie.
During 60 minutes you featured a TV commercial for TXU electricity. I don’t have the ability to rewatch the commercial, but I can describe it.
It is a bright upbeat ad featuring young smiling people holding signs with various words on it. One of the signs said the word "renewable" on it.
That would imply that TXU offers a renewable energy plan to Houston consumers. In fact, that is not the case. TXU offers no such renewable plan. According to www.powertochoose.org (a site run by the Texas Public Utilities Commission), here are all the plans offered by TXU at the moment in my area in west Houston.
TXU Energy MarketEdge,
2% Renewable Energy content
98% nonrenewable:
39% Coal and lignite
44% Natural Gas
13% Nuclear
2% Other
TXU Energy Texas Choice (also TXU Energy Texas Choice 24 and TXU Energy Texas Choice 12 )
10% renewable energy content
90% Nonrenewable
36% Coal and Lignite
40% Natural Gas
12% Nuclear
2% Other
In fact, TXU is well-known for its reliance on coal power (and has been the target of criticism by many environmental groups). They offer only mixed plans containing a small percentage of renewable energy. In comparison, 16 different companies offer "true" renewable plans (see the list below). For TXU to claim that it sells renewable energy is like the Monty Python sketch where the waitress tells the women who doesn’t like spam that the menu item "SPAM EGGS SAUSAGE AND SPAM "doesn’t have much spam in it". 
This may sound like the usual weasel words we typically find in advertising. In fact, ads like this are a deliberate attempt to sow confusion in the minds of consumers. TXU knows that consumers regard climate change as an important issue (last week’s Washington Post survey shows that by a margin of 3 to 1 Americans think the feds should regulate greenhouse gases). This ad is subtly intended to reassure nervous consumers that TXU is not emitting greenhouse gases (when in fact the opposite is true). You may say: the people in these ads are only holding signs with words on them. TXU is not claiming that it offers renewable plans. If that is the case, then the actor should not be holding up that sign at all.
I don’t know whether your local reporters have already covered this, but the most amazing thing about the Houston energy market is that many of the green/renewable energy plans are as cheap as — if not cheaper than — many of the nonrenewable plans. If only more Houstonians knew this fact!
I understand how hard it is to find ad dollars these days, and I know you can’t be expected to fact check every commercial that runs on your TV station. However, you do not have the right to run commercials with false information. Perhaps the reason why "true renewable energy companies" haven’t paid for ads on Channel 11 is that they know that TXU’s misinformation campaigns on your station is already confusing consumers.
Ironically, in late April, 60 minutes ran a piece about coal where leading climate scientist James Hansen was quoted as saying:
"We are going to have to phase out emissions from coal within the next 20 years if we hope to prevent climate disasters.. We are going to have to have a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants within the next few years and phase out the existing ones over the next 20 years or so if we have to preserve the climate like the one that has existed (over) the last several thousand years."
If the ad omitted the image of the actor holding up the "renewable" sign were omitted, the ad would no longer contain factual errors. I urge you to consider this edit or not run the ad at all in its present form.
Robert Nagle
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Here is a list of the "real" renewable energy plans available to Houstonians right now. Note that many of the companies on this list also offer mixed plans (containing renewable and nonrenewable fuels) in addition to their renewable plans.
Gexa Energy Green (6, 12)
100% Renewable energy content
YEP Green Earth 100%
100% Renewable energy content
Dynowatt GoGreen (6, 12)
100% Renewable energy content
Dynowatt Residential Go Green Variable Plan
100% Renewable energy content
Stream Energy Green & Clean (Variable and 12)
100% Renewable energy content
Bounce Energy Smart Green
100% Renewable energy content
Green Mountain Energy Pollution Free Smart
100% Renewable energy content
Southwest Power and Light Renewable Healthy Heart Of Texas Fixed Rate E-Plan
100% Renewable energy content
Amigo GoGreen 100% Renewable Energy
100% Renewable energy content
Ambit Certified Green (6, 12, variable)
100% Renewable energy content
Green Mountain Energy Company Pollution Free Introductory Offer
100% Renewable energy content
Kinetic Energy Simply Green One-Year
100% Renewable energy content
Texpo Energy Clear Blue Skies 100% Renewable (12,
100% Renewable energy content
Spark Energy, L.P. Spark 100% Renewable Advantage 12 month plan
100% Renewable energy content
First Choice Power Simply Better Advantage Green
100% Renewable energy content
Reliant Energy Monthly Flex 100% Texas Wind
100% Renewable energy content
October 13, 2009 Update. I now see that TXU does offer 100% renewable plans. Perhaps their commercial was run too early?
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