What happened
Enron, the Texas energy firm that collapsed in 2001 after years of massive accounting fraud, purported to rise from the ashes of infamy on Monday, the 23rd anniversary of its bankruptcy filing.
Who said what
"Enron" announced its resurrection in a news release, video on social media, a full-page ad in the Houston Chronicle and on billboards, claiming its focus was "solving the global energy crisis" while also hinting it might launch a cryptocurrency. But several news organizations noted yesterday that a new owner of the Enron trademark was a noted prankster behind the satirical "Birds Aren't Real" conspiracy theory and the fine print on Enron's new website said its content was "parody" and "performance art."
"If it's a joke," it's a "pretty sick joke," Diana Peters, one of the roughly 25,000 Enron employees who lost their jobs and pensions in the company's collapse, said to The Associated Press. Enron's implosion also landed its CEO and other executives in prison and brought down auditing firm Arthur Anderson. "No one knows what the hell this is," said Dan Cogdell, a defense attorney who represented Enron executives, to Houston's ABC13 News. But "I've already ordered the puffer vest and some bumper stickers" from the new Enron merchandise page, so "if it's a ploy, it worked on me."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Enron spokesperson Will Chabot said Tuesday the company isn't doing interviews but "we'll have more to share soon."
-
August 24 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include Putin at Donald Trump's circus, gallons of whitewash, and a foldable cartoon
-
5 Post Office-approved cartoons about mail-in votingCartoons Artists take on reverse logic, Putin's election advice, and more
-
The battle of the weight-loss drugsTalking Point Can Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly regain their former stock market glory? A lot is riding on next year's pills
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to ChinaSpeed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance mergerSpeed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
A potential railway megamerger raises monopoly questionsThe Explainer Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern would create the country's largest railway operator
-
Tesla reports plummeting profitsSpeed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
