Corporate Campaigns

California Auto Insurer Trying to Trick Voters Into Paying Higher Premiums

by Anne Landman — December 16, 2009 - 1:46pm

California's third largest auto insurer, Mercury Insurance, created a front group called Californians for Fair Auto Insurance Rates (Cal-FAIR), to advance a ballot initiative that, if passed, would

Main Source: 
PR Newswire/Campaign for Consumer Rights, December 16, 2009

University of Colorado at Boulder Falls Prey to Philip Morris' Strategic Philanthropy

by Anne Landman — December 4, 2009 - 2:26pm
  • Topics: Corporate Campaigns, Public Relations, Tobacco

    • The University of Colorado at Boulder has accepted a $12.1 million grant from cigarette maker Philip Morris (PM) to put on "Life Skills Training" (LST) programs in middle schools, nominally aimed at reducing students' use of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs.

    Notwithstanding that a federal court in 2006 found Philip Morris guilty of engaging in 50 years of public fraud and racketeering, a 2006 peer-reviewed study of tobacco industry documents conducted by the University of California San Francisco's Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education looked at why tobacco companies so robustly promote Life Skills Training. They found that since 1999, PM and Brown & Williamson have both worked to disseminate Life Skills Training programs into schools across the country. Why? As part of their effort, the two companies hired a public relations firm to evaluate the program. The evaluation showed that LST was not effective at reducing smoking, after either the first or second year of implementing the program. Despite this, the tobacco companies have continued to eagerly award grants to implement the program.

    Charitable Giving, Goldman Style

    by Mary Bottari — November 23, 2009 - 9:33am

    Last week, a humbled Goldman Sachs canceled its holiday parties and trumpeted a noble new program to mentor and loan to small businesses. The cost, $500 million, made headlines across the country.

    Main Source: 
    Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2009

    UnitedHealth Presses its Employees to Oppose Public Option

    by Anne Landman — November 13, 2009 - 2:07pm

    The country's largest private health insurer, UnitedHealth Group, is urging its 75,000 employees to phone their senators and write letters-to-the-editor to protest the inclusion of a public health insurance option in health reform legislation.

    Main Source: 
    Washington Post, November 13, 2009

    Pinkwashing Turns on Itself with Breast Cancer Awareness Gun

    by Anne Landman — November 3, 2009 - 1:54pm

    October was Breast Cancer Awareness month, and the group Breast Cancer Action seized on the opportunity to promote its Think Before you Pink campaign to raise awareness of how companies are increasingly explo

    Main Source: 
    GunBroker.com, November 3, 2009

    Big Insurance, Big Tobacco and You

    by Anne Landman — August 6, 2009 - 4:47pm
  • Topics: Corporate Campaigns, Democracy, Tobacco

    • The health care consulting firm the Lewin Group says that 114 million people may lose their employer-sponsored health insurance if Congress includes a "public option" in its health reform plan. Several Republican Congress members recently cited the figure in opposing a public health insurance option.

    It's an alarming statistic, but it's not true.

    The Legacy of Mr. Horace Kornegay

    by Anne Landman — January 26, 2009 - 3:33pm
  • Topics: Corporate Campaigns, Health, Tobacco

    • Several newspapers reported in late January on the death of Horace R. Kornegay, Jr., who served as the Executive Director of the Tobacco Institute from 1969 to 1986. Mr. Kornegay's passing was little noticed, but he was one of the more notable opponents of public health measures in American history.

    $50 Million to Polish Cars?

    by Sheldon Rampton — January 16, 2009 - 1:57am

    Kelmenson, Davis & Associates (KDA), a marketing advisory firm with ties to the automobile industry, is trying to raise $50 million a year to spend on fixing the image of Detroit's Big Three auto companies "via public relations and a cable TV documentary," plus "an informational magazine and website called 'American Drive,'" reports Jean Halliday.

    Main Source: 
    Advertising Age, January 12, 2009

    The Hidden War: Big Tobacco and the GOP Team up Against Southern Democrats

    by Anne Landman — June 27, 2008 - 11:59am

    When the major American tobacco companies signed the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement with the 46 states who sued to recover the costs of treating sick smokers, the companies agreed to nominal advertising restrictions and massive yearly payouts to the states.

    Main Source: 
    Raw Story, June 24, 2008
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