This research examines how historical narratives about oil shape modern energy debates. By analyzing Britain’s early embrace of oil, it reveals how simplified, polarized storytelling obscures complex realities. Understanding these patterns can help Canadians engage more thoughtfully with current energy challenges and make better-informed decisions about future energy systems.

The speaker revisits the 1912 Marconi insider-trading scandal, showing how unfounded allegations spread through fringe media triggered national uproar and revealed elite anxieties about power, technology, and public discourse. Their archival research argues that the real scandal was elites losing control of information—an issue echoed today in social media, misinformation, and democratic instability.