Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"Roughly a year ago," the retail giant Wal-Mart began moving "corporate communications people" to "key cities and areas of the country," according to vice-president of communications Mona Williams.
Submitted by Bob Burton on
The 2005 Corporate Responsibility Index, published by the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, ranks British American Tobacco (BAT) as amongst the six worst performers out of the twenty-seven companies included. The index is based on corporate self-assessments reviewed by Ernst & Young accountants.
Submitted by Bob Burton on
Hugh Morgan, the President of the Business Council of Australia (BCA), lashed out at a proposal by state attorney generals to prevent corporations from suing for defamation.
Will ongoing investigations and public outrage be sufficient to end the debased media practices that result in "fake news"?
Producers of the fake TV news stories called video news releases (VNRs) hope not. Some are worried, though. "Crisis" is the word Kevin McCauley of the public relations trade publication O'Dwyer's used in a recent column.
VNR producers are struggling to find allies, even within the PR industry. For the last three weeks, O'Dwyer's has been running an online poll asking, "Should there be a limit on the U.S. Government's use of video news releases?" Seventy-two percent of respondents to date support VNR restrictions. (O'Dwyer's doesn't disclose the number of respondents.)
VNR producers may very well be thanking their lucky stars for the Bush White House.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"As part of its ongoing effort to improve its image, Wal-Mart is hosting its first-ever media conference for 50 invited print journalists this week near company headquarters in Arkansas," reports PR Week. "We are doing this to send a clear signal of Wal-Mart's willingness to be open with the media," said a company spokesperson.
Submitted by Bob Burton on
After Hill & Knowlton contacted community newspaper editors on behalf of Wal-Mart Stores informing them "Wal-Mart representatives were available for interviews," Mike Buffington, the president of the National Newspaper Association (NMA), let fly. "So why is it that community newspapers in America are good enough to help you fend off critics with free PR, but we're not good enough for your paid advertising?
Submitted by Bob Burton on
Australian journalist Neil Chenoweth has revealed that Rupert Murdoch "sidestepped stamp duty of $A53 million [U.S.$41.3m] and capital gains tax of up to $A1.2 billion [U.S.$936m] by moving control of his ultimate family company, Kayarem, to the Caribbean and listing it on the Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSE) a week before News Corporation was reincorporated in the United States last November.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Former Enron CEO Ken Lay, "the poster boy for how big guys can rip off suckers in the stock market," is back in the news as his trial date nears. According to Frank Rich, "The enduring legacy of Enron can be summed up in one word: propaganda.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Iraqex, the U.S.-owned "investment group set up to pursue business in Iraq," has changed its name to Lincoln Group, after its holding company, Lincoln Alliance Corporation.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Afraid that their vote to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration might make Congress more likely to increase fuel efficiency standards, the automobile industry is "trying to polish its image." The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is claiming, in newspaper and radio ads, and on cleaning sponges given to Congressional staffers, that "cars are 99% cleaner than they used to be
Center for Media and Democracy (CMD)
520 University Ave, Ste 305 • Madison, WI 53703 • (608) 260-9713
CMD is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit.
© 1993-2024