Public Relations

The "Goon Squad"

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights put together this report on "the destruction of initiative democracy by big corporations trying to disguise themselves. ... When consumer advocates sponsor HMO reform, or utility rate reduction proposals, for example, insurance lobbyists or utility executives stay behind the scenes. Instead, they give money to individuals or organizations who then appear in their television ads, press conferences and other events, pretending to be impartial experts, consumer advocates, environmentalists, etc.

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Main Source: 
http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/ftcr/goons.php3
Topics: 
Front Groups

Weber Shandwick Worldwide Wins UK McDonalds Account

Submitted by Laura Miller on

PR firm giant Weber Shandwick Worldwide will represent McDonald's in the United Kingdom. WSW will address food safety issues and how McDonald's will deal with the UK's plan to restructure its agriculture sector in the aftermath of mad cow and foot and mouth disease.

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Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily, June 19, 2001
Topics: 
Public Relations

"PR Man" Reviewed

Submitted by John Stauber on

"PR Man," which opened in New York city on June 15, will run for the next two weekends through July 1. Written and directed by Robert Lyons, and based on Toxic Sludge Is Good For You by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton, the play examines one PR man's strategic damage control surrounding a grassroots protest of "bio-soil" -- toxic sludge used as fertilizer. Bogus experts, seduction, and crafted deniability fuel a momentum that even he can't control in this fast-paced, sexually-charged comic drama.

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Main Source: 
Marion Appel, for Spin of the Day
Topics: 
Public Relations

Guest Choice & "The Food Police" Make Strange Bedfellows

Submitted by John Stauber on

Lobbyist Rick Berman runs the DC-based Guest Choice Network, a mean and nasty PR operation serving the tobacco, booze and food industries. (See PR Watch Volume 8 #1 for the inside scoop on Berman & Co.) His favorite target is often Michael Jacobson's "food police" at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).

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Main Source: 
6/17/01 CSPI letter to NYT, and Guest Choice Network
Topics: 
Food Safety
Lobbying
Public Relations

PRSA Announces 2001 Silver Anvil Award Winners

Submitted by Laura Miller on

In its annual display of PR for PR, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) passed out Silver Anvil Awards to 46 winners during a ceremony held at Equitable Tower in New York City. According to a PRSA news release, the Silver Anvil (symbolizing the forging of public opinion) is annually awarded to public relations practitioners who, in the judgement of their peers, have successfully addressed a contemporary issue with exemplary professional skill, creativity and resourcefulness.

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Main Source: 
PRSA, June 15, 2001
Topics: 
Public Relations

Who's Flacking for Whom?

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

Curious to know which PR firms are working for Coca-Cola? Answer: Dublin & Assocs.; Manning Selvage & Lee; Robinson Assocs.; College Hill, U.K.; Icon Group; and Crawley Haskins. How did we find this out? Simple. We just used the handy "client search tool" on the website of O'Dwyer's PR Daily. Go ahead, try it yourself. Just enter a company's name and hit the submit button:

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Main Source: 
http://www.odwyerpr.com/
Topics: 
Public Relations

The Industry Behind the Curtain

Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on

This essay by politics professor Jackie Stevens examines the behind-the-scenes influence of the biotech industry on "Paradise Now: Picturing the Genetic Revolution," a multimedia art show in New York City with a Madison Avenue publicity budget. "Why fund installations and images that might frighten us -- a painting of a designer farm, transgenic frogs, even pieces criticizing the industry itself?

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Main Source: 
http://www.cat.nyu.edu/investnow/jackies.html
Topics: 
Genetic Engineering
Public Relations

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