by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton

There is a precise and predictable inverse relationship
between the work of journalists and the work of the public relations industry.

align="BOTTOM">Good investigative journalists work to inform
the public about the activities of the rich and powerful. They uncover
secrets known only to a few, and share those secrets with the rest of
us.

align="BOTTOM">Public relations, on the other hand, works
to control and limit the public's access to information about the rich
and powerful.

On February 9-13, 1997, more than 200 of corporate
America's top "political affair officers" (PAOs) came together
with their favorite PR gunslingers to talk "grassroots" strategy
and tactics.

align="BOTTOM">Sponsored by the powerhouse Washington, D.C.-based
Public Affairs Council (PAC), the annual "National Grassroots Conference
for Corporate and Association Professionals" took place at the luxurious
oceanside Marriott Casa Marina Resort in Key West, Florida.

"For the last 30 years you and your corporations
have been depicted as criminals," complained Hill & Knowlton
Chairman and General Manager Thomas Buckmaster. His talk, titled "Defusing
Sensitive Issues Through 'Risk Communication,' " was one of the most
revealing and well-attended presentations at Key West.

align="BOTTOM">Buckmaster cited a study of prime-time TV programming,
which he claimed showed that "businessmen are three times more likely
to be depicted as criminals than other people .

Your boss calls you into his office and hands
you a phone number. "Call your senator," he says. "I've
got a piece of legislation that I need killed, and I want you to lobby
against it for me. Here's a script spelling out what I want you to say.
I'll just sit right here and listen in on your conversation."

align="BOTTOM">This scenario--a vision of dictatorial hell
for employees, heaven for corporate lobbyists--is not only possible but
happening today on a mass scale, thanks to companies like Gnossos Software.

align="BOTTOM">In a leaflet for a product called "Net
Action," Gnossos gives an example of the way computer database and
internet technologies are giving corporations unprecedented control over
the political activities of their employees:

align="BOTTOM">"Susan Michaels, Grassroots Director for
ABC Corporation, comes to work on Tuesday morning and is greeted with
email from the Washington office regarding an urgent legislative effort,"
the leaflet begins.

Ideology is one thing. Money is another.

Quietly, behind the scenes, a coalition of some of the leading corporations in the United States has been working for years to ensure that China's Communist-led government retains most-favored-nation (MFN) trading status--in turn facilitating corporate access to Chinese markets and goods made by low-wage Chinese workers.

Details regarding the structure and tactics of this "industry grassroots initiative" were revealed by Scott Parven of Aetna Insurance at the Public Affairs Council's "National Grassroots Conference."

"Of course we don't usually talk publicly about our internal political strategy and tactics, but we're all among friends here, aren't we?" Parven said, smiling conspiratorially as he distributed a map and other coalition documents during his presentation, which was titled "Expanding Credibility Through Coalitions and Ally Development."

During Bill Clinton's first presidential campaign
against George Bush, he called for cutting off China's access to American
markets unless democratic changes were made, and said China's "most-favored
nation" (MFN) status should be linked to whether it chose to "recognize
the legitimacy of those kids that were carrying the Statue of Liberty"
in the pro-democracy Tiananmen Square demonstrations in 1989.

align="BOTTOM">For major corporations like Boeing and Motorola,
however, China's 1.2 billion people represent a huge potential market
for products ranging from cellular phones to airplanes to Coca-Cola and
Big Macs.

Members of the Washington, D.C.-based Public Affairs
Council include many of America's largest corporations, trade associations,
and public relations firms.

align="BOTTOM">Participants at PAC's February grassroots conference
looked like a Fortune 500 rogues' gallery: the National Association of
Manufacturers, the Chemical Manufacturers of America, the American Association
of Health Plans, the Edison Electrical Institute, the American Council
of Life Insurance, Kraft/Philip Morris, R.J.