Examining and exposing the activities of lobbyists and their firms is an important aspect of the Center for Media and Democracy's work. Now you can help, via our online collaborative encyclopedia, SourceWatch!

SourceWatch has many articles related to this industry, but because the players and the issue change frequently, our resources can always use some updating. The Hill recently released a list of the most powerful corporate lobbyists at http://thehill.com/business--lobby/the-best-in-the-business-2007-04-24.h....

Lobbyists are most successful if they can remain in the shadows. Can you help us shed some light on their antics? Go to SourceWatch and do a search for one of the corporate lobbyists on The Hill's list. If you find an article, please add the quote from the article in The Hill by saying, "According to the article "Best in the Business" in the April 24, 2007 issue of The Hill, lobbyist X is ....[insert the quote from the article]" and add the link to the article. If The Hill lists a lobbyist who is not already in SourceWatch, please create a short "stub" article on him or her (with the lobbyist's name, The Hill info, and any other information you might find on him/her).

If this is your first time editing, you can register as a SourceWatch volunteer editor here , and learn more about adding information to the site here and here. Thanks for joining the CMD truth squad!

Le Palais Bourbon, seat of the French National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French government.

French daily Le Monde ran a piece examining the U.S. practice of watchdogging the role of money in the political process, which is lacking in France. "In France, the situation is quite different. The financial relationships between politicians and corporations are difficult to analyze ... there exists a total absence of regulation." Journalist Cécile Grégoriades cites Money and Politics, Open Secrets, Follow the Money, and CMD's own Congresspedia project. She describes Congresspedia very favorably: "Notably, it presents very precise figures on members of Congress ... The site also abounds with information on lobbyist firms." CMD Associate Director Judith Siers-Poisson is quoted as saying, "It's essential for a voter to have the most information possible about a candidate that they are prepared to vote for. If my representative, for example, had contacts with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, or is suspected of corruption, I have a right to know that as a voter."

"Amid strenuous lobbying across Europe" to end restrictions on direct-to-consumer drug advertising, four pharmaceutical companies are considering launching their own television station. Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Novartis and Procter & Gamble envision "Pharma TV" as "a dedicated interactive digital channel funded by the industry with health news and features," reports Sarah Boseley. The companies are calling it the "European Patient Information Channel," and say its "on demand" drug information would "enable patients and citizens to make better decisions." The pharmaceutical industry wants "direct access" to European patients, and is backed "by a number of influential patient groups that are themselves heavily funded by drug companies." Independent groups under the International Society of Drug Bulletins warn that industry messages tend to focus on "relatively few top sellers, exaggerating effects and concealing risks, confusing patients and putting pressure on doctors to prescribe drugs they would not use otherwise."

CMD is a proponent of citizen journalism, particularly through www.SourceWatch.org, our collaborative on-line encyclopedia of people, organizations, and issues shaping the public agenda. A twist on the idea that the process and product of gathering information benefits from more, rather than fewer, cooks in the kitchen is at work in the on-line project, World Without Oil. The non-profit game "aims to help fill a huge gap in our nation's thinking about oil and the economy. What will happen when demand inevitably outstrips supply ... will depend in large part upon how well people prepare, cooperate, and collectively create solutions. By playing it out in a serious way, the game aims to apply collective intelligence and imagination to the problem in advance, and to create a record that has value for educators, policymakers, and the common people ..." Currently in its 23rd week of play, WorldWithoutOil.org has over 1,600 active participants.