Right Wing

$70 Million For Your Thoughts

by Sheldon Rampton — July 1, 2002 - 10:00pm

"You get huge leverage for your dollars," Roger Hertog told fellow wealthy donors at a recent national conference for right-wing think tanks including the Heritage Foundation and the Cato, Manhattan, and American Enterprise institutes. Hertog pointed out that a mere $70 million in donations has helped conservatives reframe the national debate on topics including antitrust law, Social Security privatization, welfare and affirmative action. Robert Kuttner, who attended the event as a "token liberal," was impressed by the right's realization that ideas matter in politics.

Main Source: 
The American Prospect, July 2, 2002

Outing ALEC

by Sheldon Rampton — June 30, 2002 - 10:00pm

Behind the scenes of American politics, the powerful American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been quietly pulling the strings of state legislatures. "The organization's reach is impressive: More than one-third of state legislators are ALEC members, and about 100 hold senior leadership positions," writes Nick Penniman.

Main Source: 
The American Prospect, July 1, 2002

The Cowardly Crusader

by Sheldon Rampton — June 26, 2002 - 11:48am

Someone who calls himself "Fred Curran" has been creating "parody" websites attacking environmental groups including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth and the Pure Food Campaign.

When Buzzwords Go Bad

by Sheldon Rampton — June 10, 2002 - 10:00pm

Republicans are largely sticking to their plan to partially privatize Social Security. "When it comes to style, though, Republicans are running from the term 'privatization' as fast as they can," notes Ben Fritz.

Main Source: 
Spinsanity.org, June 11, 2002

Axing the Tough Questions

by Sheldon Rampton — May 20, 2002 - 10:00pm

The recent disclosure that President Bush received a general warning before Sept. 11 of possible hijackings prompted a firestorm of spin. Conservative pundits and politicians fought back on cue, showing impressive message-discipline as they argued in unison that criticism of the president amounts to treason in the face of terrorism. Democrats "need to be very cautious not to seek political advantage by making incendiary suggestions," said Vice President Dick Cheney (without specifying any "incendiary suggestions" that any Democrats had actually made).

Main Source: 
Spinsanity.org, May 21, 2002

Exposing the Environmental Juggernaut

by Laura Miller — May 5, 2002 - 10:00pm

The National Center for Public Policy Research, a right-wing think tank, has launched a new website, envirotruth.org, to attack what it calls the "jihad" that environmental activists are waging against corporations.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily, May 6, 2002

Debunking Lynxgate

by Sheldon Rampton — April 1, 2002 - 12:00am

Details of "the great biofraud," as the Washington Times dubbed the affair, emerged just before Christmas of last year. Wildlife scientists in Washington State were accused of "planting" clumps of wild lynx fur in national forests. Supposedly the fraud was planned so the Endangered Species Act could be invoked to close the forest to campers and loggers. In reality, as government employees have insisted ever since the beginning, the whole story is a fabrication.

Main Source: 
Outside magazine, April 2002

Think Tanks in a Time of Crisis

by Laura Miller — March 28, 2002 - 4:45pm

Conservative and right-leaning think tanks continue to get more mainstream media attention than centerist and progressive groups according to a new report by Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting. "The overall percentages for the year were consistent with findings for previous years, with conservative or right-leaning think tanks garnering 48 percent of the citations, centrists receiving 36 percent and progressive or left-leaning think tanks receiving 16 percent," FAIR writes.

Main Source: 
http://www.fair.org/extra/0203/think_tanks.html

Neo-Conservatives Rally Around Bush's "War On Terrorism"

by Laura Miller — March 12, 2002 - 12:00am

"A powerful group of neo-conservatives is launching a new public relations campaign in support of President George W. Bush's war on terrorism," AlterNet's Jim Lobe writes. The group of well connected Republicans is calling itself Americans for Victory Over Terrorism (AVOT).

Main Source: 
AlterNet, March 12, 2002

Corporate America's Trojan Horse In The States

by Laura Miller — March 5, 2002 - 4:04pm

In a new report, Defenders of Wildlife and the Natural Resources Defense Council examine the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). "While ALEC purports to be a 'good-government' group operating in the public interest, its sole mission is to advance special-interest legislation across the nation on behalf of its corporate sponsors and funders," the report says. "The organization's behind-the-scenes advocacy has been surprisingly effective -- leading, according to ALEC material, to the enactment of more than 450 state laws during the 1999 and 2000 state legislative sessions.

Main Source: 
Defenders of Wildlife & Natural Resources Defense Council
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