Why is oil giant Chevron actively trying to discredit the new Joe Berlinger documentary “Crude”? The Berlinger documentary, for those who haven’t seen it, concerns the notorious “Amazon Chernobyl” case. It’s a 16-years-and-counting class action lawsuit brought by 30,000 Ecuadorean indigenous rainforest dwellers against Chevron for environmental pollution which so contaminated the local waters that everyday use of the water has resulted in cancer, severe skin rashes, and other ailments.

According to a recent New York Times article, the oil giant recently released videotapes showing the judge in this lawsuit was allegedly involved in a bribery scheme. The article’s implication is that the bribery was somehow related to the class action lawsuit. Yet missing from the account is identification of the party attempting to bribe the judge or why. That footage allegedly supports the contention of Chevron spokesman Kent Robertson that the judge’s (anti-Chevron) rulings need to be annulled.

Call me a nitpicker, but I find a few problems with accepting this supposedly objective video footage at face value. There is no information in the NYT article regarding the circumstances under which the footage was taken. Did somebody in Chevron’s employ take the footage? Was the footage obtained via a spy camera planted near where the attempted bribery meeting took place? Or did somebody employed either by Chevron or a Chevron intermediary try to entrap the judge into accepting a bribe?

Chevron’s Robertson has not disputed that the company held onto the footage for months. But his claim is that the footage needed to be authenticated. That story would have held more water had said authentication been done by someone not employed in some capacity by Chevron to verify the veracity of the footage. As is, it is equally likely that given today’s video technology capabilities the footage could have been doctored in some manner to besmirch the Ecuadorean judge’s reputation.

The Chevron spokesman also claims lack of documentary proof of a link between oil-related pollution and the Ecuadorean plaintiffs’ diseases. Since Robertson is speaking on behalf of his corporate masters, pardon me for not taking his claim at face value. A factual determination such as a pollution-cancer link is best left to the workings of the Ecuadorean justice system rather than Chevron’s very visible self-interest in claiming otherwise. Equally importantly, has Robertson ever heard of demurrers? It’s a nifty (and commonplace) legal motion used to dismiss lawsuits by claiming there aren’t enough disputed facts available to have a trial. Surely in the 16 years and counting that this lawsuit has been dragging on, Chevron’s legal team might have been tempted to seek a demurrer at least once?

Speaking of disputed issues, director Joe Berlinger mentioned one central point that Chevron is attempting to bury. Texaco, which merged with Chevron, built and operated the systems and infrastructure which dumped oil and other toxic substances into the Ecuadoreans’ water. Even though Chevron later sold their equipment to PetroEcuador, the company allegedly didn’t correct the systems’ faults.

The above words should not be construed as an automatic siding with Berlinger. I missed the film during its screenings at the recent San Francisco International Film Festival, and am unable to personally comment on its merits. However, critics who have seen “Crude,” such as New York Times critic Stephen Holden, noted the film evenhandedly allows both the rain forest dwellers and the multinational oil company to have their say. The only type of media attention Robertson and his ilk would prefer involves the application of reportorial tongues to the soles of their corporate boots.

Chevron’s anti-“Crude” campaign reminds me of the corporate damage control McDonald’s attempted when Morgan Spurlock’s “Super Size Me” was getting commercial release. My only response to the oil company’s efforts is to make damn sure I attend a screening of what may well be one of the most important films of the year.

(“Crude” will screen for at least one week at SF’s Lumiere Theatre starting on September 25.)