Guest guest Posted April 6, 2005 Report Share Posted April 6, 2005 6 Apr 2005 15:42:01 -0000 weekly-spin The Weekly Spin, April 6, 2005 THE WEEKLY SPIN, April 6, 2005 --- sponsored by the nonprofit Center for Media and Democracy http://www.prwatch.org To support our work now online visit: https://www.egrants.org/donate/index.cfm?ID=2344-0|1118-0 --- The Weekly Spin features selected news summaries with links to further information about media, political spin and propaganda. It is emailed free each Wednesday to rs. SHARE US WITH A FRIEND (OR FIFTY FRIENDS) Who do you know who might want to receive Spin of the Week? Help us grow our r list! Just forward this message to people you know, encouraging them to sign up at this link: http://www.prwatch.org/cmd/_sotd.html --- THIS WEEK'S NEWS == BLOG POSTINGS == 1. Will " Fake News " Survive? == SPIN OF THE DAY == 1. A Tick for Irresponsibility 2. The CORE of Biotech PR 3. Suing Them Softly 4. Ad Students Create Agent C for the Agency 5. Medialink Drives Auto Coverage 6. Xenophobic Purple People Meters 7. Wal-Mart's Media Greeters 8. I'd Like to Teach the World to Spin 9. Crisis Management, Ketchum Style 10. U.S. Army Toons for Middle Eastern Tots 11. Another Kind of Fake News 12. Reporters and Soldiers on Embedding 13. Duck and Cover II: Washington DC's Expensive Sequel 14. No-See-Um VNRs A " Crisis " For PR Industry 15. Clear Communications 16. Not Using VNRs " Would Be Negligent, " Says Medialink Head 17. Unhappy Days Are Here Again for Fleishman-Hillard ---- == BLOG POSTINGS == 1. WILL " FAKE NEWS " SURVIVE? by Bob Burton 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. For the rest of this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3547 == SPIN OF THE DAY == 1. A TICK FOR IRRESPONSIBILITY http://www.smh.com.au/text/articles/2005/04/04/1112489420659.html 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. The index table features a bold tick of approval for BAT, which the key explains means it scored " less than 75%, " the lowest category. In a letter to the editor, University of Sydney public health professor Simon Chapman asked, " Why so coy in giving the actual score? " After calculating that BAT Australia is responsible for 8,550 avoidable deaths, Chapman scored the company at zero. He also requested " that those organising the CRI index don't debase the corporate responsibility movement in future by allowing tobacco companies to enter. " SOURCE: Sydney Morning Herald, April 5, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3550 2. THE CORE OF BIOTECH PR http://www.freezerbox.com/archive/article.asp?id=337 U.S. agribusiness giant Monsanto recently announced it was raising its earnings expectations. " Monsanto's genetically engineered seed sales are booming - a 20 per cent increase last quarter - and the company expects the growth to continue as it expands outside the U.S., " AP reported " target= " _blank " >AP reported. One reason may be Monsanto's extensive use of PR. GM Watch's Jonathan Matthews looks at the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), a U.S.-based civil rights group with ties to Monsanto that has become an outspoken advocate of GE foods. Matthews reports on CORE's claims that the global environmental movement's opposition to biotech is " lethal eco-imperialism " and " devastates families and communities and kills millions every year. " At CORE's annual Martin Luther King, Jr. dinner this year, they honored Karl Rove with a " Public Service Award. " Monsanto's CEO Hugh Grant chaired the dinner with Option One Mortgage's president and CEO Bob Dubrish. SOURCE: Freezerbox, March 14, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3549 3. SUING THEM SOFTLY http://afr.com/premium/articles/2005/04/04/1112489414086.html 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. Morgan wrote that the BCA - which includes among its members the Australian CEOs of McDonald's, BP and Shell - believes that corporations are " suing only in exceptional circumstances. " According to Morgan - who gained notoriety for his outbursts against the Aboriginal community, unions and environmentalists - corporations must " defend their reputations from false, dishonest or malicious campaigns. " The Australian Financial Review reported that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, a BCA member, was suing the Finance Sector Union on the grounds that a " shareholder campaign targeting ordinary, corporate and employee shareholders " before the company's November 2004 general meeting constituted illegal industrial action. SOURCE: Australian Financial Review, April 5, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3548 4. AD STUDENTS CREATE AGENT C FOR THE AGENCY http://www.nyunews.com/news/campus/8895.html Advertising students at New York University are running a marketing campaign for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. The students and their professor Jacob Jacoby created Agent C Marketing, which developed and is currently implementing a campaign that promotes its sole client, the CIA, to college students as an " exceptional employer. " The marketing effort includes print advertisements, " cool CIA stuff " giveaways, and a scavenger hunt scheduled for April 8. (The speaker event was cancelled, " to prevent any potential harm that may escalate from a protest. " ) The CIA-NYU partnership was organized by EdVenture, a marketing firm that provides " both one-of-a-kind educational value to students and educators while reciprocally providing clients with marketing, brand building, research, sales and recruiting access to campuses across the country. " Other EdVenture clients include General Motors, Citibank, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and People Magazine. SOURCE: Washington Square News, February 15, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3546 5. MEDIALINK DRIVES AUTO COVERAGE http://www.odwyerpr.com/members/0404medialink.htm Under a new agreement, the video news release company Medialink Worldwide " will produce programs about auto-related topics for WheelsTV, a cable TV and Internet service devoted exclusively to consumers' interests in cars, trucks and motorcycles. " Medialink's " sponsored and non-sponsored content " will start appearing on WheelsTV in June. The companies " will also explore developing new opportunities, such as co-branded radio series serving the sponsorship base of both companies, " reports O'Dwyer's. Medialink has already produced a " prepackaged news program for General Motors, " which " began with statistics on arthritic Americans " and promoted GM's " Sit-N-Lift " powered seat. SOURCE: O'Dwyer's PR Daily (sub. req'd.), April 4, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3545 6. XENOPHOBIC PURPLE PEOPLE METERS http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-355-1553916,00.html U.S. Republican pollster Frank Luntz traveled to Britain, " to examine the mood of the voters. " According to 30 " swing voters " using " people meters, " George Bush may be Tony Blair's biggest liability. Luntz wrote, " We showed them the first few moments of the recent White House press conference where President Bush and Mr. Blair stood side-by-side and talked about 'a clear way forward' in Iraq. The dials plummeted. Never in 17 years of moderating people-meter sessions have I seen an audience react so negatively. " Adding that " nothing riles the undecideds ... more than immigration, " Luntz suggested, " If the Conservatives have the courage to tackle the immigration issue head-on, and the skill to avoid crossing the fine line into race-baiting, they can recapture many working-class Labour seats. " SOURCE: Times Online, April 4, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3544 7. WAL-MART'S MEDIA GREETERS http://prweek.com/news/news_story.cfm?ID=236946 & site=3 " 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. Wal-Mart " plans to make the media event an annual one and to expand it to broadcast outlets. " The AFL-CIO union will demonstrate outside the conference. In related news, twenty-one members of Congress sent a letter to ABC News protesting Wal-Mart's sponsorship of Good Morning America's " Only in America " segment. Representative Anthony Weiner said Wal-Mart's business practices " cost thousands of Americans their jobs and businesses. " SOURCE: PR Week (sub. req'd.), April 4, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3543 8. I'D LIKE TO TEACH THE WORLD TO SPIN http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-03/31/content_429738.htm A Public Relations Society of America delegation to China met with teachers, media, business officials, and the new Chinese Institute of Public Relations. Ketchum's John Paluszek told China Daily, " Every institution in society has a need for public relations, because every institution has audiences or stakeholders, " including governments " that want to 'sell' an important issue. " Jean Valin of the Global Alliance for Public Relations noted that in China, where PR is a relatively new discipline, practitioners are " strongly involved in servicing the finance sector, " but " will not be given assignments which go against government policy. " SOURCE: China Daily, March 31, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3542 9. CRISIS MANAGEMENT, KETCHUM STYLE http://www.prweek.com/thisweek/index.cfm?ID=236904 & site=3 The PR company Ketchum boasts on its website that its issues and crisis management expertise " helps clients plan rational strategies to deal with difficult situations early -- before an issue or crisis erupts. " In written responses to questions from PR Week about the firm's role in the Armstrong Williams controversy, Ketchum CEO Ray Kotcher said they didn't publicly comment for a week because, while " it was tempting to clarify the dialogue, " the firm " needed to establish the facts. " The facts, as reported by USA Today and confirmed by Kotcher, are that Williams was paid $240,000 by Ketchum, as a subcontractor on a Department of Education contract to promote the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. The contract included a stipulation, Kotcher confirmed, " that Williams would talk about NCLB on his show. " SOURCE: PR Week (sub. req'd.), April 1, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3541 10. U.S. ARMY TOONS FOR MIDDLE EASTERN TOTS http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4396351.stm " In order to achieve long-term peace and stability in the Middle East, the youth need to be reached, " explained the U.S. government, in an ad seeking artists for an " original comic book series " to help Middle Eastern youth " learn lessons, develop role models and improve their education. " The U.S. Army's Fourth Psychological Operations Group at Fort Bragg in North Carolina has done initial character and plot development and will produce the series. The series will be based on " the security forces, military and police, in the near future of the Middle East. " The Fourth Psychological Operations Group has " been deployed during conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan dropping leaflets and cartoons urging surrender and broadcasting pro-American messages via radio and television. " SOURCE: BBC News, March 31, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3539 11. ANOTHER KIND OF FAKE NEWS http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111219863592293188,00.html?mod=mm%5Fhs%5Fmark\ eting%5Fstrategy " The two dirty words of market research, " writes Carl Bialik, are " sponsored by. " One example is a recent Microsoft-funded study, which found that " Microsoft was the company respondents most associated with reliable, high-quality hardware peripherals. " The problem is that " the other choices " survey participants were given " weren't household names. ... Had the question been flipped to ask which company was least associated with reliable, high-quality hardware peripherals, Microsoft might well have won that one, too. " The proliferation of sponsored studies is due, in part, to the press. " While many sponsored studies spawn no articles or are covered negatively, others receive undeserved attention -- at least enough to spur companies to keep funding more studies. " SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (reg. req'd.), March 31, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3537 12. REPORTERS AND SOLDIERS ON EMBEDDING http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Iraq/embedded.html Gina Cavallaro, who's traveled to Iraq four times to report for the Army Times, has mixed feelings about embedding journalists. " The media is afraid ... and rightly so, " she said. " They're relying more on the military to get them where they want to go, and as a result, the military is getting smarter about getting its own story told. " But, she added, " I don't necessarily consider that a bad thing. " Iraq War veteran Paul Rickhoff, who started Operation Truth " to tell the public the truth of the war from a soldier's perspective, " feels that " embedding reporters actually limits the stories they can tell. " If reporters don't " play along, " he said, " next time they'll deny you access. " SOURCE: The Hill, March 31, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3536 13. DUCK AND COVER II: WASHINGTON DC'S EXPENSIVE SEQUEL http://prweek.com/news/news_story.cfm?ID=236900 & site=3 The giant PR firm Burson-Marsteller won a $4.6 million contract from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for two to seven months' work. The contract, awarded under the Urban Area Security Initiative, is " for the development and implementation of a regional public awareness and education campaign for a major emergency or disaster, such as a terrorist act, " in the Washington DC area. The goal " is to have 50% of people in the national capital area report that they've taken steps to be prepared. " Burson-Marsteller will do PR and outreach, and " partner with ad and community-outreach agencies. " One-third to one-half of the budget is slated for advertising. SOURCE: PR Week (reg. req'd.), March 31, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3535 14. NO-SEE-UM VNRS A " CRISIS " FOR PR INDUSTRY http://www.odwyerpr.com/members/0330comm_mcc_vnrs.htm Kevin McCauley at O'Dwyers PR Daily writes that despite video news release producers' hopes that the debate over fake news " would just blow away, " it has become a " crisis " for the industry. " A simple solution, " he suggests, is labeling VNRs. " A corporate or government credit on video material wouldn't matter much to today's TV watchers, especially younger ones who are bombarded with advertising, " he wrote. Kevin Foley, the president of KEF Media Associates, responded that labeling is already " done by every responsible company in this business. " However, two weeks ago Doug Simon of D S Simon Productions explained that there is a world of difference between labeling the opening frame that news producers see and labeling each VNR frame that viewers see. In tracking the use of his company's VNRs, Simon said, " Fewer than 10 percent of the pieces we get back have some sort of identification. " SOURCE: O'Dwyers PR Daily (reg. req'd.), March 30, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3530 15. CLEAR COMMUNICATIONS http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/prn/texas/3107220 Radio behemoth Clear Channel Communications created the position of Chief Communications Officer and named their Senior Vice-President of Corporate Communications, Lisa Dollinger, to the post. The position includes " corporate communications and branding, reputation and issues management ... media relations, consumer viral marketing, strategic sponsorships, " but will focus on internal communications. Two years ago, Dollinger joined the company to battle negative media coverage. " We had to clear the decks and let the media know they couldn't repeat inaccuracies about the company, " she said. About Clear Channel's sponsorship of rallies in the lead-up to the Iraq invasion, Dollinger said the events were " not intended to be pro-military, " but " more of a thank you to the troops. " SOURCE: Houston Chronicle, March 29, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3529 16. NOT USING VNRS " WOULD BE NEGLIGENT, " SAYS MEDIALINK HEAD http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,151871,00.html In a Fox News interview, Laurence Moskowitz, the CEO and President of Medialink Worldwide, defended video news releases (VNRs). " If the government doesn't use VNR as a tool, I believe they would be negligent, " he said. Medialink is the largest global producer of VNRs. Moskowitz estimated that some 4,000 VNRs are produced by corporate and government sources each year. Bob Priddy, the chair of the Radio-Television News Directors Association, said airing VNRs without the sponsor being identified breaks the Association's code of ethics. " If people take canned material, whether it's from a government agency or anywhere else, and they don't tell their audience who or where it is coming from, they are lying to their consumer, " he told Fox. SOURCE: Fox News, March 30, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3528 17. UNHAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN FOR FLEISHMAN-HILLARD http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/11266759.htm The former manager of Fleishman-Hillard's (F-H) Los Angeles office Douglas R. Dowie is suing the PR company for sacking him from his $370,000 a year job over the overbilling of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP). " When it got real hot politically, Fleishman, instead of standing by him and protecting him, they just threw him to the wolves, " Dowie's attorney, Michael Faber, said. City officials have disputed $4.2 million of F-H billings between 1998 and 2004 under the $24 million DWP contract. The lawsuit states that in a conference call with Dowie after the controversy erupted, a F-H official said that someday " we'll all be singing 'Happy Days are Here Again', " reports the Los Angeles Times. SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, March 30, 2005 For more information or to comment on this story, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/node/3527 ---- The Weekly Spin is compiled by staff and volunteers at the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), a nonprofit public interest organization. To or unsubcribe, visit: http://www.prwatch.org/cmd/_sotd.html Daily updates and news from past weeks can be found at the " Spin of the Day " section of the Center website: http://www.prwatch.org/spin/index.html Archives of our quarterly publication, PR Watch, are at: http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues CMD also sponsors SourceWatch, a collaborative research project that invites anyone (including you) to contribute and edit articles: http://www.sourcewatch.org PR Watch, Spin of the Day, the Weekly Spin and SourceWatch are projects of the Center for Media & Democracy, a nonprofit organization that offers investigative reporting on the public relations industry. We help the public recognize manipulative and misleading PR practices by exposing the activities of secretive, little-known propaganda-for-hire firms that work to control political debates and public opinion. Please send any questions or suggestions about our publications to: editor Contributions to the Center for Media and Democracy are tax-deductible. Send checks to: CMD 520 University Ave. #227 Madison, WI 53703 To donate now online, visit: https://www.egrants.org/donate/index.cfm?ID=2344-0|1118-0 ___________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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