Proof That the Bakken Is the "Real Thing" -- North Dakota, USA

Al Jazeera -- yes, the news media outlet from the Mideast -- is going to visit the Bakken.

Link here. Regional newspaper, so link will be broken soon.

Producer Kavitha Chekuru, reporter Cath Turner and cameraman Ralf Oberti are planning to arrive in New Town late this week.

Chekuru, who has never been to North Dakota, said they are coming to North Dakota to see how the community and the Three Affiliated Tribes are dealing with the oil boom. She said the tribes have more regulations that they have to work with for oil development than off-reservation oil development involves.

Chekuru became interested in visiting North Dakota last year when she came across a wire story about the latest oil production in N.D. "and was struck by how high it was," she said.

"I started to look more into the location where this was taking place and the Bakken Formation. When I found out that much of the area included Fort Berthold, I thought it would be an interesting side of the 'boom' to look into. I think it is good when we can cover issues impacting the country's tribes as it is not often covered by the mainstream media," she said.

When Al-Jazeera shows up, you know the Bakken is the "real thing."