PR Watch, Fourth Quarter 1997, Volume 4, No. 4

by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton

The public relations industry was American-made, but now blankets the globe. This was brought home to us during a speaking tour arranged by Australian Bob Burton for our book, Toxic Sludge Is Good For You. Bob is sort of the Aussie version of PR Watch--an investigative writer and activist who reveals the lies, damn lies and deceptions behind the news down under. We asked him to reveal to our readers how Australian PR firms use the same tricks, tactics and personages developed here to spin issues there.

Global PR firms like Burson-Marsteller, Edelman, Hill & Knowlton and others get rich serving the propaganda needs of the few hundred giant industrial combines that dominate most economic activity on planet earth.

by Bob Burton and Sheldon Rampton

As corporations, products and issues have internationalized, the PR industry has followed. The recent negotiations over global warming in Kyoto, Japan illustrate just how high the stakes have become and how the PR industry helps broker international coalitions of corporations, think tanks and industry-funded scientists to achieve industry goals.

Among scientists, the consensus is nearly unanimous

On the job in Australia, PR Watch scouts out the Canberra headquarters of the Burson-Marsteller PR firm.

by Bob Burton

The public relations industry which began in the United States has spread to other countries, but the US continues to be an innovator and leader in the industry.

During the past decade, one of PR's most insidious inventions--the anti-environmental, self-named "Wise Use" movement--has gained momentum in Australia, with the assistance of corporations and PR firms that operate on both sides of the Pacific.

In 1986, the chemical industry sponsored a tour of New Zealand by Wise Use co-founder Ron Arnold.

by Bob Burton

As in the US, the Australian PR industry woos potential clients with promises of campaigns that can't fail. Rarely do they admit to plans that have gone wrong, let alone at the hands of small, low-budget community groups. But the industry's facade of omnipotence can be eroded with the assistance of a little understanding of the PR industry's tactics.

Understanding some basic elements of how industry

by Tom Wheeler

"This is not something we are trying to PR away," claims Martin Christie of Shell International. "This is a measured and considerate management tactic. We are working very hard to manage the situation."

Speaking at the Issues Management Conference, a November 1997 gathering of top corporate PR executives, Christie was there to unveil Shell's new model of environmental management and local

When this issue of PR Watch originally appeared in December 1997, we reported that the the Burson-Marsteller PR firm created the Global Climate Coalition in 1989. We believed this at the time, based on a source which we regarded as reliable. Burson-Marsteller made no attempt to deny this claim or to request a correction from us until July 2001. Following Burson-Marsteller's denial, however, we have undertaken a thorough review of our files and have spoken with several sources, none of whom can substantiate this claim. We therefore must retract this statement.