Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Columnist Gene Weingarten takes a savage cut at a flack who calls himself "Mr. PR" and has written a book that promises to teach people how to become famous. "As an end in itself, this sounded as slimy as squid succotash," Weingarten writes before describing his own "diabolical plan" to "subject Mr. PR to the PR man's Worst Nightmare."
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"A researcher who publicly questioned the safety of Pfizer Inc.'s painkiller Bextra was removed from a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel that will review it and similar products next year," reported the Wall Street Journal.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
"According to exit polls, one-fifth of voters cited 'moral values' as the factor that most influenced their vote. ... These findings hold deep significance for anyone in issues management," wrote PR Week.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Several groups are investigating how electronic voting machines performed during the U.S. elections.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
New York Times ombudsman Daniel Okrent has critiqued the practice by his newspaper and others of relying on information from "expert analysts" without informing readers that many of the experts represent the interests of their financial sponsors. "Bad reporters find experts by calling up university press relations officials or brokerage research departments and saying, in effect, 'Gimme an expert,'" he writes. "Really bad reporters, paradoxically, work a little harder: knowing the conclusions they want to arrive at, they seek out experts who just happen to agree with them.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
The insurance giant American International Group fired Qorvis Communications, the PR firm it had hired to help address New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's probe of the insurance industry.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
Pharmacology professor Sorell Schwartz of the Center for Environmental Health and Human Toxicology testified against the industry-funded Tobacco Institute, during the ongoing $280 billion federal lawsuit against big tobacco.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
The Hill & Knowlton PR firm "is working to allay any voters' concerns in Florida's fourth largest county amid reports that votes were not counted by new electronic balloting machines in an August primary." The firm's $160,000 contract with Hillsborough County includes promoting e-voting machines and encouraging "voters to turn out and cast ballots." Hill & Knowlton is also helping Republican elections s
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Within an hour after voting began in Florida, "the system collapsed in Broward County, ground zero for the 2000 fiasco in the state," comments Markos Moulitsas. He lists other allegations of election fraud and voter suppression in states including Nevada, Ohio, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and South Dakota, On his Dkosopedia website, Moulitsas is hosting a "Voter Registration Fraud Clearinghouse, where people are invited to report irregularities.
Submitted by Diane Farsetta on
To "help journalists put election equipment-related snafus in context," the Information Technology Association of America, which includes several electronic voting machine manufacturers, is circulating a media primer.
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