Oil Industry’s Teen-Targeted ‘Clueless’ Propaganda Film Revealed to Be Shockingly Inappropriate

In a bizarre relic of corporate propaganda, a recently unearthed video reveals how the oil industry once attempted to influence teenage attitudes toward petroleum through a “Clueless”-inspired short film. The 17-minute production, titled “Fuel-less: You Can’t Be Cool Without Fuel,” represents a troubling chapter in the fossil fuel industry’s long history of climate misinformation campaigns.

For years, the American Petroleum Institute’s teen-targeted film had become something of an urban legend. Many recalled being shown the video in schools during the 1990s, but Climate Town researchers were initially unable to locate a copy, leading to speculation about a potential industry cover-up. However, after a two-year search, a complete version has finally surfaced, revealing content that is even more problematic than anticipated.

The film’s premise revolves around a high school student who emerges from a shower to find all petroleum-derived products mysteriously vanished from her life. This implausible scenario serves as a vehicle to emphasize petroleum’s omnipresence in everyday items, though critics point out the film’s selective logic—many plastic props remain despite supposedly being petroleum-based, while common non-petroleum materials like cotton clothing disappear without explanation.

Beyond its questionable scientific messaging, the video has drawn criticism for inappropriate content. The opening sequence features a teenage character in a manner that many viewers have described as unnecessarily sexualized, raising serious questions about the production’s ethics and oversight.

Complete with a ’90s theme song and music video segments, the production culminates in what climate advocates identify as a classic industry deflection tactic—placing responsibility for environmental problems on individual consumer choices rather than corporate practices or regulatory frameworks. This “individual responsibility” narrative has since been recognized as a strategic approach used by polluting industries to shift focus away from systemic change and corporate accountability.

The rediscovery of “Fuel-less” comes amid increased scrutiny of fossil fuel companies’ communications strategies. Internal industry documents have revealed that major oil corporations had scientific understanding of climate change impacts decades before publicly acknowledging these risks, similar to the tobacco industry’s suppression of cancer research.

Today’s oil companies frequently promote their investments in alternative energy and biofuels as evidence of environmental commitment. However, climate researchers and advocacy groups argue these efforts remain disproportionately small compared to ongoing fossil fuel operations, with many “green” initiatives functioning primarily as public relations exercises rather than meaningful business transformations.

The video serves as a stark reminder of how industrial interests have historically targeted young audiences with messaging designed to shape lifelong attitudes toward environmental issues. As climate education becomes increasingly critical, examining these historical propaganda pieces offers valuable insight into the evolution of corporate influence tactics and their lasting impact on public discourse around environmental policy.

The reemergence of “Fuel-less” coincides with heightened legal challenges against fossil fuel companies for their role in climate change misinformation, with several municipalities and states pursuing litigation based on evidence that the industry knowingly downplayed environmental risks while protecting their own infrastructure from climate impacts they privately acknowledged.

For climate advocates, the rediscovered footage represents more than just a quirky cultural artifact—it documents a deliberate strategy to influence young minds at a critical moment when scientific consensus about climate change was solidifying, but before public opinion had fully formed on the issue.