[Media-watch] FW: [Pandora] Pandora Collected, January 28, 2004

Tue Feb 3 21:41:13 GMT 2004

A bulleting from 'Pandora' - a list on PR and propaganda which media watch
people might find interesting.  Subscription details at bottom.

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From: "eveline lubbers" <bbbbook at xs4all.nl>
Reply-To: evel at xs4all.nl
Date: Wed, 28 Jan 2004 10:37:27 +0100
To: pandora at oudenaarden.nl
Subject: [Pandora] Pandora Collected, January 28, 2004

Dear Pandora readers,
A full and interesting collection of spinwatch items I trust
you will enjoy. Later this week, we will compile a special
on spin around the Hutton report on dr. Kelly's death in
the UK.
gr
eveline

1.  Smear campaign against an RFID privacy activist
2.  Revealed: how stars were hijacked to boost health company's profits
3.  PR firm hired to sell top-up fees
4.  How to succeed like an activist in 2004: 9 suggestions for corporate
PR folks
5.  Canada: Pesticide companies ordered to change ads
6.  Cambridge abandons plans for primate lab
7.  Documentary on the Carlyle Group
8.  German spinwatch!
9.  Drawing Adidas from memory (fun!)
10. Corner House: Corruption, Governance and Globalisation

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1.
Smear campaign against an RFID privacy activist
Press Release, January 12, 2004

Grocery Manufacturers of America Issues Apology to RFID
Privacy Activist Character assassination not condoned,
says GMA CEO

GMA CEO C. Manly Molpus issued an apology for an errant
email that suggested the organization might be formulating a
smear campaign against an RFID privacy activist. According
to email evidence, a GMA employee emailed Katherine Albrecht,
Founder and Director of Consumers Against Supermarket
Privacy Invasion and Numbering (CASPIAN), to request a
copy of her bio, "for our sources."
Ms. Albrecht found the request unusual and emailed a
request for further information.

To her surprise, she received a message that was clearly
intended for someone else:

I don't know what to tell this woman! "Well, actually we're
trying to see if you have a juicy past that we could use against
you."

For more information, see http://www.spychips.com and
http://www.nocards.org.

-----------------------------
2.
Revealed: how stars were hijacked to boost health company's
profits 

Famous women have backed an NHS screening test unaware
they were being set up by a biotech corporation and its
PR agency. 

Antony Barnett, January 25, 2004, The Observer

Few could question the sentiment behind the campaign: a fight
against cervical cancer. A clutch of famous women, including
Liz Hurley, Caprice and Carol Vorderman, signed up to support
a crusade to introduce a new NHS screening test that could save
the lives of thousands of women.
The campaign is due to reach the House of Commons on
Wednesday, when MPs will be lobbied on the issue.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1130785,00.html

-----------------------------------
3.
PR firm hired to sell top-up fees

Mark Townsend and Antony Barnett, January 18, 2004, The Observer

A high-flying City public relations tycoon and close friend of Peter
Mandelson has emerged as a key player in Tony Blair's bid to stave
off a Commons rebellion over university top-up fees.

Roland Rudd's financial PR firm Finsbury is receiving taxpayers' money
as part of a lucrative contract with university vice-chancellors to sell the
PM's plans. The move has sparked outrage among MPs, who claim the
deal is an 'abuse' of public money and proof of a 'scandalous' collusion
between universities and the Government to twist the arms of rebel
backbenchers. 

http://media.guardian.co.uk/marketingandpr/story/0,7494,1126367,00.ht
ml 

--------------------------------------
4.
How to succeed like an activist in 2004:
9 suggestions for corporate PR folks

Activists are great and successful communicators. Observations
of gross measures of PR success - column inches, air time, story
placements, number of times spokesmen are interviewed, shifts in
public opinion, legislation supporting an activist agenda, etc. — are
testaments to activists’ ability to get their messages out. If corporate
PR folks were as successful, they’d have less difficulty finding a
seat at the corporate decision-making table.

With this in mind, here are nine suggestions for making corporate
PR folks as effective as their activist counterparts in 2004.

http://www.epublicrelations.ca/

-------------------------------------
5.
Canada: Pesticide companies ordered to change ads

An environmental group has won a victory against some mulitnational
pesticide companies. Last summer Earth Action filed a petition
with a review office in the Auditor General's department. As a
result, for the first time since the petition process started, four
companies that either sell or use pesticides have been ordered
to change the way they promote their products.

Coalition against BAYER-dangers
http://www.CBGnetwork.org

------------------------------------
6.
Cambridge abandons plans for primate lab
Anti-vivisectionists claim victory as costs force university to
scrap project 

Alok Jha, January 28, 2004, The Guardian

Anti-vivisectionists declared victory yesterday as Cambridge
University announced that it had shelved plans to build a
controversial multi-million pound neuroscience laboratory.
The university has denied any suggestion, however, that it
had yielded to pressure from animal rights extremists, citing
financial difficulties instead.

Medical researchers were concerned. "This is a serious blow
for British medical research," said Mark Matfield, director of
the Research Defence Society, a pro-animal research lobby.
"These delays and security concerns were caused by
orchestrated threats and intimidation. The government needs
to bring in tougher legislation to tackle extremist campaigns.
Otherwise they will remain a threat to all medical science
that depends on animal research."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/animalrights/story/0,11917,1132617,00.html

-------------------
7.
Documentary on the Carlyle Group

The Dutch broadcaster VPRO's investigative program Tegenlicht
(something like Counterlight) broadcasted an updated version
of the documentary about the Carlyle group, the lobbyers/arms
traders, who have Bush sr. and Baker on board, and arrange
the new world order behind the scenes.
The documentary can also be seen on line, most of it in English
with subtitling.
Also worthwhile, at the same webpage, the documentary on the
contracting for rebuilding Iraq

They promise to have more links on the topic soon.

http://info.vpro.nl/info/tegenlicht/index.shtml?7738514+7738518+
7738520+16152392 (mind you: long URL!)

------------------------------------
8.
German spinwatch! 

http://www.spindoktor.de/

also interesting:
http://www.netzwerkrecherche.de/

-------------------------------------
9.
Drawing Adidas from memory

Here's a curio. What happens when you ask people
to draw brand logos from memory? Well, they get
it slightly wrong, that's what. If you've had
some poncey branding bod in to jazz up your logo,
frankly you've pissed the money away. People won't
notice the change. Yes BP, we are looking at you.

http://www.monochrom.at/markenzeichnen/index-eng.htm

----------------------------------------
10.
New Corner House Briefing paper, number 29

"Corruption, Governance and Globalisation:
Lessons from the New Thailand"
by Dr Pasuk Phongpaichit

International agencies such as the World Bank believe
that corruption blocks economic growth and that it comes
from a lack of proper rules and institutions.

But in Thailand corruption has gone hand-in-hand with
economic growth when competing factions have invested
their 'rents' from corruption productively.

And more rules have not necessarily meant an end to
corruption in the country. The new Thaksin Shinawatra
premiership, while marked by efforts to clean up petty graft
and institute a more regulated market for political favours,
is merely institutionalising forms of corruption centred,
US-style, on the intersection of big business and politics.

Popular movements are crucial in combatting corruption.
Telecoms tycoon Thaksin is working hard to weaken them
by trying to roll back recent victories by watchdog institutions,
intimidating activists and laying on pseudo-populist programmes.

This briefing paper looks at all these aspects and provides
many insights for international campaigns addressing corruption.

The briefing paper is now available on The Corner House website
in both text/html (88K) and PDF (similar to the printed paper copy,
93KB) formats:

http:www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/briefing/29thailand.html
or
http:www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/briefing/29thailand.pdf

If you have problems downloading the briefing or would like a paper
copy, let us know: cornerhouse at gn.apc.org

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Pandora could not contain her curiousity and opened a forbidden
box: all the evils of humanity flew out. Similarly, the Pandora
Project intends to crack open the PR industry and spread its
noxious secrets to people everywhere.
Listinfo: http://www.oudenaarden.nl/lists/pandora/

Battling Big Business, Countering greenwash, front groups and
other forms of corporate deception, for this book see
http://www.evel.nl/pandora/bbb.htm

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Pandora could not contain her curiousity and opened a forbidden box: all the
evils of 
humanity flew out. Similarly, the Pandora Project intends to crack open the
PR industry 
and spread its noxious secrets to people everywhere.

Listinfo: http://www.oudenaarden.nl/mailman/listinfo/pandora
Listarchive:http://www.oudenaarden.nl/lists/pandora/

Battling Big Business, Countering greenwash, front groups and other forms of
corporate 
deception, for this book see http://www.evel.nl/pandora/bbb.htm