Nurturing the Wealth Beneath Our Feet or Trampling Sacred Grounds? Blog Narratives on Fossil Fuel Development in New Zealand 2010–2016

This article explores the role of the narrative sequence in the debate over fossil fuel exploration and exploitation in New Zealand as it appears in a selection of blogs. Since 2008, the New Zealand government has sought to encourage the development of this industry, claiming the existence of many underexplored basins around the two islands. Perceptions on these prospects differ greatly as the blogs considered here exemplify. We first present the wider political, economic and cultural context leading to the production of the blogs, followed by a description of the different types of narrative sequences found in these blogs. We then go on to discuss the argumentative value of these blogs in the heated debate over resource exploitation. Finally, we draw some conclusions about the generic features of blogs.