Covering oil company profits?

Then you might want to listen to this later this week:

A tele-seminar has been scheduled this Thursday, Jan. 26, to brief journalists on the surge in oil company profits and the world market forces pushing earnings skyward.

Starting this Wednesday, Jan. 25, the world’s major oil companies will report huge earnings increases for 2005. ConocoPhillips reports Wednesday; Chevron, Friday; ExxonMobil on Monday, Jan. 30; Royal Dutch Shell, Thursday, Feb. 2; and British Petroleum on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

“Covering the Surge in Oil Profits” will begin at 11 a.m. EST Thursday and conclude after two hours. Newspeople will be able to dial a toll-free number to participate in the audio portion, and will have access to presentation slides via the FACS website.

The FACS tele-seminar for journalists features experts who will address both the worldwide supply and demand forces behind the profit bonanza, and the impact on individual companies and regions.

The program is presented by the Foundation for American Communications [FACS], in association with the Houston Chronicle, Scripps Howard Foundation, and the Society of Professional Journalists.

The seminar speakers and their written presentations, available online, will provide journalists with an up-to-date command of oil reserves, investments, capital forces and other trends that shaped the latest profit news.

This program is aimed at reporters, editors and producers who cover business, energy and related issues. The tele-seminar will be moderated by Michael E. Phillips, former Director of Editorial Development, Scripps-Howard.

Presenters include Robert Kaufmann, Ph.D., Professor, Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Boston University, and Edward H. Murphy, Ph.D., Group Director for Industry Operations at the American Petroleum Institute.

There is no registration fee but you must pre-register to participate. To register, go online to http://www.facsnet.org/edu and follow the links. Or phone FACS at 626-584-0010 to register.

Once you register, you will receive directions for joining the tele-seminar conference hookup and viewing online presentation materials. FACS is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) educational organization with its headquarters in Pasadena, Calif., and an office in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1976, FACS has delivered educational programs to thousands of journalists. It is guided by a Board of Trustees drawn from leaders in the news media, nonprofit and corporate organizations, and by a Journalism Advisory Board of top editors and news directors from throughout the United States.