Environment

Gas Guzzlers Group Burns Cash

by Bob Burton — October 18, 2007 - 9:48pm

The Sport Utility Vehicle Owners of America (SUVOA) industry front group paid the PR firm Stratacomm $440,000 in the first half of 2007 to lobby the U.S. government. Stratacomm boasts a range of auto industry clients. Later this year, the U.S.

Main Source: 
Associated Press, October 18, 2007

Retail Research Is Hurting Science

by Diane Farsetta — October 18, 2007 - 4:21pm

"The biggest threat to science," writes Jennifer Washburn, is "the decline of government support ... and the growing dominance of private spending over American research." In 1965, the U.S. government funded more than 60 percent of research, while in 2006, 65 percent of research was privately funded.

Main Source: 
Discover magazine, October 11, 2007

New Participatory Project: Nuclear Companies Head for the Trough

by Bob Burton — October 17, 2007 - 5:32am

With billions of dollars in subsides on offer from the U.S. government, some utilities are lining up to submit applications with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for new nuclear power plants. As a first step to helping citizens and journalists track what's happening we will be building a page listing what is known about the new nuclear power station proposals.

Main Source: 
New Nuclear Power Plant Applications in the U.S.

Oil Execs Continue to Motor Around U.S.

by Diane Farsetta — October 15, 2007 - 12:57pm

Media activists in Grand Rapids, Michigan attended Shell Oil president John Hofmeister's recent talk there, on "How the US Can Ensure Energy Supply for the Future." Hofmeister "stated up front that he was on a 50 city tour and that Grand Rapids was number 45," according to Media Mouse.

Main Source: 
Media Mouse, October 5, 2007

Employee of the Month, Even Before He Started

by Diane Farsetta — October 15, 2007 - 11:47am

"Three months prior to the announcement that Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Jeffery S. Merrifield would be joining the Shaw Group Inc. as Vice President of its Power Group, Mr. Merrifield vigorously championed several major policy initiatives that directly benefited his future employer," states the watchdog group Project on Governmental Oversight (POGO) in a press release.

Main Source: 
Project on Governmental Oversight, September 25, 2007

Chevron Taps "Human Energy"

by Diane Farsetta — October 2, 2007 - 4:05pm

While ExxonMobil and BP have "spent lavishly on image ads," Chevron's new "power of human energy" campaign is a particularly ambitious "bid to recast itself as an environmentally responsible corporate citizen." Advertising Age reports that its first ad, a 2 1/2 minute spot from the ad agency McGa

Main Source: 
Washington Post, September 28, 2007

Nuclear Industry "Constructs" Its Own Reality

by Diane Farsetta — October 2, 2007 - 3:21pm

In its bid to build new nuclear power plants, the nuclear power industry has "found a way around a long-standing regulatory policy they say added a year or more to construction times for nuclear plants." The U.S.

Main Source: 
Bloomberg News, September 29, 2007

Something Fishy

by Bob Burton — October 2, 2007 - 7:44am
  • Topics: Activism, Cause-Related Marketing, Issue Management, Corporations, Environment, International, Public Relations

    • An abridged extract from Bob Burton's Inside Spin: The Dark Underbelly of the PR Industry.

    A hallmark tactic of activist campaigns in the 1960s and 1970s was the use of consumer boycotts to punish recalcitrant companies. By the 1990s, however, the trend was more towards developing standards and accrediting retail products that passed muster. The theory was that an accredited product would be rewarded by consumers while the laggards would be under financial pressure to lift their game. One of the pioneering projects during the 1990s was the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which was established by a broad coalition of non-profit groups. Its aim was to shift timber production to sources designated as more sustainable and reduce the market share for forest products derived from the destruction of the world's great forests. Despite numerous problems, the FSC label had some impact, especially in Europe.

    Two U.S. States To Get "Balanced Energy" PR in their Stockings

    by Diane Farsetta — September 27, 2007 - 4:20pm

    The coal industry front group Americans for Balanced Energy Choices (ABEC) is seeking public relations help "in targeting the public, politicians, interest groups, and the media" on the national level, and also in Pennsylvania and Nevada. ABEC promotes coal as an "essential, affordable and increasingly clean" source of electricity.

    Main Source: 
    O'Dwyer's PR Daily (sub req'd), September 26, 2007

    Follow the Money, Eh? Canadian Reporters' Glowing Failure

    by Bob Burton — September 26, 2007 - 1:35am
  • Topics: Journalism, Issue Management, Nuclear Power, Third Party Technique, Environment, Ethics, International, Media, Public Relations

    • "Much of the environmental movement, including Greenpeace, has lost its way when it comes to nuclear power, caught up in politically correct ideology and stooping to sensationalism to garner support," declared a recent media alert announcing the visit of one-time Greenpeace activist Patrick Moore to Toronto. The alert continued, "In Ontario, CANDU nuclear energy is the greatest single contributor to carbon reduction relative to all other energy producing technologies."

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