Front Groups

SUV Owners Group a Front for Industry

by Laura Miller — April 6, 2003 - 10:00pm

"The Sport Utility Vehicle Owners of America, a grassroots [read: industry front] group started in 1999, is in the midst of a major membership push and revamping of its website as it seeks to become a source of pro-SUV information that the media can turn to," PR Week writes.

Main Source:

PR Week, April 7, 2003

Can a PR Front Group Run Iraq?

by Sheldon Rampton — February 20, 2003 - 11:00pm

PR Watch has previously written about the origins of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) as a PR front group created by the Rendon Group, which has nevertheless become the Bush administration's preferred source for "intelligence" about Iraq. Now an internal fight is bubbling over INC's plan to actually become the government of Iraq after a U.S. invasion.

Main Source:

The Guardian (UK), February 21, 2003

Bogus "Consumer Group" Stripped of Domain Names

by Sheldon Rampton — February 19, 2003 - 11:00pm

The Center for Consumer Freedom, a front group for the restaurant, alcohol and tobacco industries, has been forced to give up the domain names of two web sites used to attack the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), in what CSPI called an "Orwellian" effort to create confusion among Internet users looking for CSPI's websites.

Main Source:

CSPI news release, February 20, 2003

AARP Examines Drug Industry Front Groups

by John Stauber — February 9, 2003 - 10:02am

AARP, the huge non-profit membership and business organization that bills itself as the senior lobby is now headed by corporate PR veteran Bill Novelli.

Main Source:

AARP Bulletin, February, 2003

Republicans Seek a Few Good African Americans

by John Stauber — February 1, 2003 - 11:00pm

Washington Post columnist Gene Weingarten feels "sorry for African American Republicans. They've never had it real good ... So I was heartened when I happened on a Web site last month run by a group called the African American Republican Leadership Council. ... The honorary chairman of the panel is listed as former U.S. senator Edward W. Brooke III, a Republican from Massachusetts. So I called up Brooke, who confirmed the important fact that he is black. Alas, he is not in any way associated with the group.

Main Source:

Washington Post, February 2, 2003

The Fake Parade

by Laura Miller — December 2, 2002 - 11:00pm

Outside the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in August in Johannesburg, there were poor street vendors and farmers holding signs and wearing t-shirts reading: "Save the Planet from Sustainable Development", "Say No To Eco-Imperialism", "Greens: Stop Hurting the Poor" and "Biotechnology for Africa." The problem, according to environmental reporter and activist Jonathan Matthews is that the anti-environmentalist demonstration was organized by the corporations that environmentalist wanted to be held accountable.

Main Source:

The Freezerbox, December 3, 2002

Wolves In Sheep's Clothing

by Laura Miller — October 27, 2002 - 11:00pm

"Some of the United States' best-heeled corporations and capitalists, seeking to elect a Republican Congress in November, have turned to a gambit pioneered nearly 70 years ago by rulers of the Soviet Union," Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist Joel Connelly writes. "The underlying reason: Sheep's clothing is often needed for wolves to stalk their prey." With elections drawing near, industry-sponsored front groups are flooding the air waves with their anonymous messages. The drug company sponsored United Seniors Association spent more than $1 million to boost embattled Rep.

Main Source:

Seattle Post-Intelligencer, October 28, 2002

Steve Milloy (aka The Junkman) and His Identity Crisis

by Sheldon Rampton — October 9, 2002 - 11:30am

Industry apologist Steven Milloy, formerly a tobacco lackey at The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition and currently a self-proclaimed expert on "junk science," is hiding behind yet another front group. StopLabelingLies.com claims to be dedicated to exposing "examples of false and misleading food and other product labels and their associated marketing campaigns," but its real mission is to attack organic foods on behalf of the biotech industry.

B-M's "Independent" Healthy Weight Task Force

by Sheldon Rampton — September 29, 2002 - 10:00pm

"One of the things medical people really know about is clever advertising and one of the really clever tricks of the industry is duping the media into running advertising campaigns absolutely free of charge," writes Media Watch of Australia as it deconstructs the "Healthy Weight Task Force," a front group set up by the Burson-Marsteller PR firm in Australia to promote sales of Xenical diet pills.

Main Source:

ABC Online (Australia), September 30, 2002

Choice Words from Microsoft

by Sheldon Rampton — August 12, 2002 - 10:00pm

The Initiative for Software Choice appears to be a front group for Microsoft, which is lobbying to stop governments from using open-source software. The governments of Peru and Canada are considering going to open source, which is cheaper (often free) and usually more secure and bug-free than proprietary software like Windows.

Main Source:

CNET News.com, August 13, 2002