Ethics

How David Axelrod May Be Like Karl Rove

by Diane Farsetta — November 13, 2008 - 6:08pm

"If David Axelrod decides to join the Obama White House, he'll ... have to take an enormous pay cut and possibly reveal the extent of his lucrative corporate public relations work," reports Politico.

Main Source: 
Politico.com, November 13, 2008

Spin, Hype, and a Hoax Involving "Joe the Plumber"

by Sheldon Rampton — October 16, 2008 - 4:19pm
  • Topics: Election 2008, Ethics

    • Annenberg's FactCheck.org has published an analysis of the "spin and hype" in the final U.S. presidential debate between John McCain and Barack Obama.

    Bisphenol A: A Chemical with Deep-Pocketed Friends

    by Diane Farsetta — October 16, 2008 - 12:03pm

    The same month that Martin Philbert was named the chair of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel considering the safety of bisphenol A, a defender of the chemical made a $5 million grant to Philbert's research center.

    Main Source: 
    Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, October 11, 2008

    AIG's Got the Public's Money to Burn

    by Diane Farsetta — October 9, 2008 - 1:36pm

    The insurance company American International Group (AIG), which "vowed to temper spending after hosting a conferen

    Main Source: 
    Bloomberg News, October 9, 2008

    The Beginning of the End of Cigarettes for Sale in Pharmacies?

    by Anne Landman — October 2, 2008 - 2:32pm
  • Topics: Ethics, Health, Tobacco

    • On October 1, 2008, the city of San Francisco put a law into effect that prohibits the sale of cigarettes in pharmacies. Walgreens drug store chain and Altria/Philip Morris have filed lawsuits against the city over the measure. In a September 30, 2008 statement about the new law, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom related the city's simple rationale: "Pharmacies should be places where people go to get better, not where people go to get cancer."

    FDA Tries to Pay Qorvis $300K Under the Table

    by Diane Farsetta — October 2, 2008 - 2:07pm

    After the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was "pummeled by Congress for poor inspections of tainted vegetables, drugs and other products," the agency wanted public relations help. First, it hired Mildred Cooper as "a temporary FDA consultant ... on a two-year contract to advise FDA Commissioner Andrew C.

    Main Source: 
    Washington Post, October 2, 2008

    "Clean Coal" Boosters Plan to Ridicule Renewable Energy

    by Bob Burton — September 26, 2008 - 1:31am

    A leaked draft PR plan by the Clean Coal Council, a Queensland state government partnership with the coal industry, stated that a "key outcome" would be to "turn around attitudes that clean coal is an unproven and unsafe technology." While the PR plan noted that "stakeholders" wanted investment directed to "emissions-free renewable energy technologies, not clean coal," the Council has other ideas.

    Main Source: 
    The Sunday Mail (Queensland, Australia), September 20, 2008

    Reach Out and Smear Someone

    by Diane Farsetta — September 19, 2008 - 3:24pm

    The Republican Jewish Coalition says it hired the political polling firm Central Research to "understand why Barack Obama continues to have a problem among Jewish voters." But the poll questions upset many of the hundreds of Jewish voters in Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New

    Main Source: 
    Politico.com, September 16, 2008

    The Sound of Silence

    by Sheldon Rampton — September 17, 2008 - 1:42pm

    "The Ear and Hearing Journal has rebuked a Washington University researcher for failing to disclose that he was working as a paid expert for a siren manufacturer when he published a study saying firefighters weren't at risk for job-related hearing loss," reports David Armstrong. The study's author, William W. Clark of the Washington University School of Medicine in St.

    Main Source: 
    Wall Street Journal (sub req'd), September 12, 2008

    The Politics of Lying

    by Sheldon Rampton — September 17, 2008 - 12:37pm

    "Politicians have never been known for telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, but generally when caught exaggerating the truth they usually stop. This year things seem to be different," observes Andrew Tanenbaum of Electoral-Vote.com.

    Main Source: 
    Electoral-Vote.com, September 17, 2008
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