Matt Rothschild, editor of the Progressive, notes "Sarah Olson no longer has to choose between her liberty and her integrity. The freelance journalist, whom I profiled on January 17, will not be forced to testify at the court martial of Lt. Ehren Watada, who refuses to report for duty in Iraq. On January 29, Watada stipulated to the truth of the statements he gave Olson and another reporter. In exchange, the Army dropped two 'conduct unbecoming' charges against him."

As the U.S. Federal Communications Commission nears reconsideration of its media ownership rules, the liberal think tank Center for American Progress released a report titled, "Local Media Diversity Matters." Co-authors Mark Lloyd and Phil Napoli write, "Americans' ability to learn about and debate local, state and national issues and to monitor our representatives depends upon our exposure to news and discussion that is not controlled by a small group of mostly like-minded corporations. ... Yet the FCC does not have the means today to determine whether its policies are promoting or discouraging independent and diverse speech." The report suggests new ways "to really measure local media diversity" and "determine what level of media diversity actually supports strong local democracies." The proposed approach takes into consideration "the diversity of sources available to both the general public and significantly distinct 'ethnic' audiences," distinguishes between outlets that do and do not offer "locally produced news and public affairs," and measures "gender and ethnic diversity" among news workers.

"Prompted by reports that [Bush] administration appointees, including a former oil industry lobbyist who was chief of staff at the [White House] Council on Environmental Quality, edited climate change reports or pressured scientists to tone down statements about the dangers of global warming," the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing. Committee chair Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), along with Rep. Thomas Davis (R-Va.), is pushing for the release of documents to determine "whether the White House's political staff is inappropriately censoring impartial government scientists." A recent report by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Government Accountability Project details cases of political interference in climate research. And in Canada, federal environment commissioner Johanne Gélinas has been "pushed out the door," after repeatedly calling for a "massive scale-up" of environmental initiatives, particularly on global warming, reports the Toronto Star.

A new study "funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and published in the Jan. 29 Annals of Family Medicine, claims the $4.5 billion" direct-to-consumer drug ad (DTC) industry "produces ads that are more emotional than informational, and may be convincing Americans that they're sicker than they really are," reports Advertising Age. Lead author Dominick Frosch said, "DTC ads send the message that you need drugs" for problems "that many people used to manage without prescription drugs." Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. David Kessler warned that advertising drugs "based on their emotional appeal is something that has great risks." The study found that 95 percent of DTC ads made "emotional appeals," 78 percent "implied that use of the medication would result in social approval," and only 25 percent included information about illness prevalence. The Association of National Advertisers and the Coalition for Healthcare Communications, an industry group, expressed reservations about the study.

The case of PR firm Fleishman-Hillard overcharging the city of Los Angeles for consulting services continues. Two former executives at the firm's Los Angeles office, Douglas Dowie and John Stodder, were sentenced to 42 months and 15 months in federal prison, respectively. "In 2004, the firm paid the city $6 million to settle a lawsuit claiming overbilling, mainly to the Department of Water and Power," reports John Spano. Dowie, who the prosecutor called "the big fish" in the overbilling scheme, maintained his innocence and said he would appeal. Stodder "was contrite, accepting responsibility." While one juror said the evidence "indicated there were guilty parties higher up the ladder than Dowie or Stodder," no charges have been brought against their superiors or the PR firm itself. Yet, "the scandal rocked Los Angeles City Hall," having "spurred ethics reform and is credited with helping persuade voters to elect Antonio Villaraigosa mayor." Dowie was a confidant of former mayor James Hahn.

A University of Pittsburgh child psychiatrist who conducted company-sponsored clinical trials on adolescent use of the antidepressant Paxil also conferred with the company on how to respond to press inquiries challenging the safety of the drug for adolescents, reports the BBC investigative program, Panorama. The psychiatrist, Dr. Neal Ryan, sent emails to GlaxoSmithKline dating to 2002 requesting media advice. Ryan interpreted the clinical trial to support the use of Paxil in depressed children, advice that other doctors can follow even when drug regulators do not approve the medication. The emails are among documents turned over to plaintiffs in a California lawsuit against the pharmaceutical maker. In 2003, the U.S. Food and Drug Agency issued a warning against prescribing Paxil to children due to elevated suicidical thinking attributed to the drug. The United Kingdom's pharmaceutical review agency is conducting an investigation into the company's clinical trials. GlaxoSmithKline issued a statement denying any improprieties.

Helen Zia, author and board member of the Women’s Media Center, writes about Sarah Olson's victory: "Subpoenas against journalists may be intended to put a damper on their reporting, but in Olson’s case, the overwhelming response has been an outpouring of support for her stand on free speech—for both journalists and for voices of dissent. Such principles brought Olson, a freelancer without the deep pockets of a large news organization, the pro bono legal services of First Amendment Center, the early support of PEN America, the Society of Professional Journalists, and other groups. She garnered broad support from journalists and celebrities at the National Conference for Media Reform in mid-January—and aid from the Center for Media and Democracy, which quickly put up an impressive website for Olson pro bono, complete with an online petition and support boxes. ... Though the subpoena has been dropped, Olson has no intention of slowing her work on behalf of free speech and the First Amendment.”

Four years ago, McDonald's voluntarily announced that it would cut artery-clogging trans fats, the ingredient listed as "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" that is used to cook french fries and many other products throughout the fast food industry. Fast-forward four years--add an $8.5 million legal settlement and the first legislative bans on trans fats--and the company has announced it again. This time McDonald's says it's not spin: "We can confirm that we've got the right oil. We're phasing it in," said a company spokesman of a new mix of canola, corn and soy oils. Like other fast food chains, McDonald's has a special incentive: New York City has banned trans fats in most fried food, effective in July, and other communities aren't far behind. Some restaurant chains, including KFC and Wendy's, had already announced their own phaseouts, but McDonald's told the Chicago Tribune that, until now, it hadn't been able to ensure that its fries would live up to consumer expectations. A Harvard University study estimates that trans fat-driven heart disease kills 30,000 people per year. Health advocates still offer a mixed verdict: ending trans fats commendably may help keep arteries healthier, but won't reduce calories or obesity, notes nutritionist Marion Nestle.

Democracy Now! has an interview with journalist Sarah Olson, following the announcement that the U.S. military has dropped its effort to subpoena her testimony in the court-martial of war resister Lt. Ehren Watada. "I think that this is really a victory for the rights of journalists in the United States to gather up and to disseminate news really free from government intervention," Olson says, but adds, "I’m also a little bit concerned that Lieutenant Watada still faces prosecution for exercising his First Amendment rights during a public presentation. I also think that the preservation of these rights for journalists and for individuals clearly requires vigilance. Journalists are subpoenaed today in the US with an alarming frequency."

"Although the military has dismissed the subpoenas of journalists, Veterans for Peace Seattle Chapter organizers Tom Brookhart and Gerri Haynes, and Olympia-based anti-war organizer Phan Nguyen remain under order to testify against Lt. Watada. Tom Brookhart and Gerri Haynes came to the attention of Army prosecutors for their role in organizing the VFP National Convention in August. Phan Nguyen, a member of the Olympia Movement for Justice and Peace, was the moderator of a number of press conferences and rallies this summer regarding Lt. Watada and the support his stand against illegal war has generated. With Lt. Ehren Watada now formally acknowledging the remaining statements in question, the only rationale the Army could now have for dragging these prominent anti-war organizers into a military court is to intimidate the peace movement." Independent journalist Aaron Glantz first reported on this issue of Army intimidation of citizens in an early January article for Inter Press Service.

Journalist Doug Ireland writes today on his blog Direland, "I was more than happy to lend my name in support of Sarah Olson's courageous and principled refusal to join in the prosecution effort to send Lt. Watada to jail, so I asked a number of my journalist and writer friends to join me in signing a statement against the military's attempt to subpoena Olson and other journalists, and most of them -- like sportswriter and HBO boxing commentator Larry Merchant, Pulitizer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner, best-selling author John Berendt, and Pulitizer Prize-winning journalist Sydney Schanberg (hero of the movie "The Killing Fields," based on his book about Cambodia under the Khmer Rouges)-- said yes. Schanberg wrote me: 'Yes, Doug, please add my name to the appeal. Sarah Olson's principled stand is a crucial one at a time when the mainstream press is bargaining away, in bigger and bigger chunks, the privacy of reporters' notebooks, confidential conversations, e-mails, etc.ad infinitum. Her professional product has been published and is available to the government. As she says, reporters betray their role as fact-seekers for the public if they are forced -- through threat of imprisonment -- to become agents of a particular government's agenda."

Add the National Press Club to a growing list of journalists fighting back against military harassment of the press. In a news release, "The National Press Club today announced its opposition to the U.S. Army's subpoenas of Oakland, CA, freelance journalist Sarah Olson and Honolulu Star Bulletin reporter Gregg Kakesako. The subpoenas call for the reporters to testify at the Feb. 5 court martial of Army Lt. Ehren Watada, who refused to deploy to Iraq and made several disparaging remarks about the conduct of the war. A petition calling for the dismissal of the subpoena has been posted at Defend The Press and a link to the petition can be found from the NPC Home page. 'The National Press Club vehemently opposes any effort to subpoena reporters over their work,' said NPC President Jerry Zremski, Washington bureau chief for The Buffalo News. 'Subpoenaing reporters in an effort to make the prosecution's case -- particularly when the charge involves free speech issues -- is abhorrent and grossly perverts the foundation of press freedom this nation is built on.' "

Source: Alley, Clark, Greiwe & Fulmer

Bayer, a global drug and biotechnology company with a turnover of $US35.5 billion in 2005, has agreed to pay $8 million to settle a legal action by 30 U.S. states over its failure to disclose potentially serious consequences of using Baycol, a cholesterol-lowering drug. Baycol was withdrawn from the market in August 2001 due to its "sometimes fatal" side effects. Under the terms of the settlement, Bayer agreed that it failed to adequately warn doctors and patients of the results of clinical studies that demonstrated serious consequences from using the drug. The settlement also requires Bayer to post the results of all future clinical studies on the Internet at the time of the completion.

The British government is looking to recruit a senior PR professional to help sell the controversial UK National Identity Cards Scheme. The yet-to-be appointed Director of Marketing and Communications will will help oversee the roll-out of the ID cards, which are scheduled to be introduced in 2009. PR Week reports that, since first being proposed, the scheme has attracted considerable criticism over "possible infringement of civil liberties, with the potential creation of a national identity database, and the cost."

The public relations company Edelman has confirmed that its Washington and Hong Kong offices are handling media relations for the deposed Prime Minister of Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra. A September 2006 military coup saw Thaksin, a controversial media mogul and politician, toppled from power while he was in New York. "We are supporting him as a private citizen in his efforts to return back to his home country," said Alan VanderMolen from Edelman Asia-Pacific. The Thai paper The Nation reports that Barbour, Griffith and Rogers is also working for Thaskin, to "promote democracy in Asia." While Thaksin was popular in rural areas, he was also noted for suppressing critical media and launching a brutal military response to increasing violence in the largely Muslim south of the country.

"A group of big scientific publishers has hired" aggressive public relations executive Eric Dezenhall "to take on the free-information movement," reports Jim Giles. "Some traditional journals, which depend on subscription charges, say that open-access journals and public databases ... threaten their livelihoods." Dezenhall "spoke to employees from Elsevier, Wiley and the American Chemical Society at a meeting arranged last July by the Association of American Publishers." AAP subsequently hired his firm, Dezenhall Resources. In emails obtained by Nature, Dezenhall suggested the publishers claim that "public access equals government censorship" and "equate traditional publishing models with peer review." He recommended they work with the Competitive Enterprise Institute and gave his campaign fee as $300,000 to 500,000. In another email, Wiley's director of corporate communications said Dezenhall told the publishers they "had acted too defensively" and "worried too much about making precise statements."

Ten of the nation’s largest companies, including Caterpillar and former Global Climate Coalition member, Duke Power, say they now want Congressional legislation to limit climate change--including at least a 10 percent annual national decline in carbon dioxide emissions. A Sierra Club spokesman offered hope that the companies will “throw not just their messaging weight but their political weight behind [the call for legislation].” Thomas Tanton, Institute for Energy Research vice president and global warming skeptic, called the turnabout a “good defense" against more stringent regulation. "Something less bad is better than something really bad.” How will Congress respond? Reporters for the Washington Post suggest that there is a “Harry and Louise”-type political ad by industry lurking to scare away innovation-driven legislators. “If you’re a Democrat in a moderate district, this is not the kind of vote you want to take,” Myron Ebell of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, another industry-supported group, told the Post.

Julie Edelman, in a co-op tour for five companies

When one satellite media tour (SMT) -- a sponsored, canned TV "interview" -- promotes multiple products, it's called a "co-op media tour." PR Week reports that "co-op media tours are on the rise, and not just because they spread the production costs among multiple brands." Michele Wallace of the broadcast PR firm Medialink Worldwide says that "numerous products centered around a theme ... can provide a pretty strong news hook that may not be there when you focus on one product." PR Week's tips include making "sure your co-op tour doesn't appear too commercialized." News Broadcast Network's Matthew Smith says disclosure concerns haven't affected "the overall interest in co-op tours," but adds that "stations want to know if the spokesperson is being paid and by whom so they can convey that to the audience." Whether TV stations actually do provide that disclosure to viewers is another matter altogether.

The Federal Communications Commission has added junk food marketing critic Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), the Benton Foundation (an FCC watchdog), and several academic groups to a list of mostly industry advocates on an FCC task force slated to consider limits on marketing food and beverage products to children. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan), who has taken credit for creating the task force, issued a statement calling it "a bipartisan effort to provide a forum for the public and private sectors to examine the impact of media and on childhood obesity." Brownback's mantra is that any restrictions must be voluntary. He initially excluded Sen. Harkin from deliberations over creating the task force. The first meeting of the task force has been announced for Valentine's Day. The task force press release is mum on whether sweets will be available at the table.

The most recent pro-nuclear presentation by Patrick Moore, a former Greenpeace activist turned PR consultant, was at the annual conference of EnergySolutions. EnergySolutions is described by Salt Lake Tribune journalist Judy Fahys as a "Salt Lake City-based company trying to become the nation's - and perhaps the world's - largest nuclear waste company." In his presentation, Moore argued that there should be a massive expansion of the number of nuclear power stations beyond the current 103 nuclear power stations in operation. "We have to talk about 100 or 200 new plants in the U.S.," he said. Vanessa Pierce, executive director of the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah is unpersuaded. "Patrick Moore is to nuclear power what the Tobacco Institute was to Big Tobacco," she said. "Nuclear power and reprocessing are no more promising solutions for global warming than smoking is for leading a healthy lifestyle."

Marc Cooper writes in The Nation's website that Sarah Olson's "plight hasn't gotten much attention from professional media associations, in part because she's not being asked to reveal a confidential source but only to verify what's already been published, and no doubt in part because she works primarily for small alternative outlets. Olson is being defended, however, by the First Amendment Project in Oakland on a pro bono basis. The PEN American Center has sent a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates on her behalf. And Military Reporters and Editors president James Crawley issued a statement saying: 'Trying to force a reporter to testify at a court-martial sends the wrong signal to the media and the military.... Using journalists to help the military prosecute its case seems like a serious breach of that wall.' Olson has received a letter of support from the Society of Professional Journalists.

Editor and Publisher reports that "a petition challenging U.S. Army subpoenas ordering reporters to testify in the court martial of an Army lieutenant has drawn more than 50 signatures from prominent media members, and will be placed online for more to sign later this week. Sarah Olson, a freelance journalist and radio producer in San Francisco, began circulating the petition last week, which supports her efforts and those of Honolulu Star Bulletin reporter Gregg Kakesako to oppose the order to testify. Both have been subpoenaed to testify at the court martial of 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, which begins Feb. 5 at Fort Lewis, Washington."

Author Norman Solomon writes, "We often hear that the Pentagon exists to defend our freedoms. But the Pentagon is moving against press freedom. ... People who run wars are notoriously hostile to a free press. They're quick to praise it -- unless the reporting goes beyond mere stenography for the war-makers and actually engages in journalism that makes the military command uncomfortable. Evidently, that's why the Pentagon subpoenaed Sarah Olson. They want her to testify to authenticate her quotes from Ehren Watada -- which is to say, they want to force her into the prosecution of him. ... The Pentagon's attack on journalism is an attack on the First Amendment -- and an attempt to drive a wedge between journalists and dissenters in the military. Resistance is essential for democracy."

Multinational food marketing giants, including Unilever, Coca-Cola, Kellogg and Danone have helped fund an $8 million industry ad campaign to sway consumers to "know what's going inside you"--but not necessarily to do anything about it. The United Kingdom's Food Standards Agency, for its part, has begun promoting its more activist "traffic light" approach to healthy and unhealthy food with short TV spots. Omnicom Group has made the 30-second industry ad, while WPP Group's United agency has created the government's 10-second animated ad. Some food retailers are supporting the government's approach, even though both labels are voluntary given the European Union's control (and inaction) over food labeling regulations. "If you put traffic lights on, even low-fat cereals have a red light," complains a Kellogg spokesman. The Children's Food Campaign has shown that about half the U.K. population lacks sufficient math skills to understand the industry-preferred "Guideline Daily Amount" system for nutrition, which is much like the percentage daily requirements system mandated in the United States.

The $4 billion a year spent by the drug industry on direct-to-consumer advertising promoting drugs is generating a political backlash. "There's a lot of support for a ban on direct-to-consumer advertising, and the Democrats know it," said Gary Ruskin, Commercial Alert's executive director. Both Representative John Dingell, the new chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Senator Edward Kennedy, the new chairman of the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, have previously expressed concerns about drug industry advertising. One proposal - opposed by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the industry peak body - is that there be a two-year moratorium on ads after a drug is approved. Reflecting the new political mood, a forthcoming drug industry conference is advertising a session: "How likely is a DTC advertising moratorium? How can I build a product launch plan that will prepare for such action?"

The Nation magazine's John Nichol's writes that American journalism is under assault and "the greatest of all threats comes when journalists fail to defend fellow reporters and editors who have come under direct attack. ... Sarah Olson, a 31-year-old independent writer and radio producer from Oakland, California, finds herself in the targets of Army prosecutors, Those prosecutors are demanding that Olson help them build the case against 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, an officer who faces a court-martial trial for expressing opposition to the war in Iraq and for refusing to deploy with a unit being dispatched to that country. ... 'It's not a reporter's job to participate in the prosecution of her own sources,' she explains. 'When you force a journalist to participate, you run the risk of turning the journalist into an investigative tool of the state.' There is no question that Olson is right. The question is whether journalists will stand with her as she defends our craft. ... I am proud to add my name to the list of signers of a statement that is not merely a defense of Sarah Olson but a reassertion of the founding principle that a free press is the essential underpinning of democracy."

George Bush meets Alexander Downer in Canberra.

The Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, recently sought to downplay concerns about the mental health of an Australian citizen, David Hicks, who has been imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay since January 2002. "A visit took place just a few days ago ... and the report of that meeting was that he was healthy. There was no suggestion that he was suffering from mental illness," Downer said in a radio interview. Downer refused to disclose who it was that had met Hicks. The Australian reports that "the assessment of Hicks's health was made by the public affairs officer at the US embassy during a three-minute meeting on January 12 where Hicks refused to speak." The official was Scott Weinhold. Downer claimed that criticism of him for implying that Weinhold was "a psychologist or some doctor with special qualifications" was unjustified.

A U.S. federal court judge has extended an injunction banning groups in the U.S. from adding a weblink to leaked internal documents on Eli Lilly's schizophrenia and bipolar disorder drug, Zyprexa. Despite the injunction, the documents have been distributed around the world from websites outside the U.S. Lilly also has problems on another front. The New York Times reports that "lawyers from the consumer protection division of the Illinois attorney general's office demanded that Lilly hand over marketing materials, e-mail messages, and other documents with information about promotion" of the drug. Vermont government investigators have made a similar order. At issue is whether Lilly hid information on weight gain and the associated risk of diabetes and also promoted the use of the drug for patients who didn't have schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

During the struggle against South African apartheid, journalist Alistair Sparks used to visit the United States to "have my batteries recharged," inspired by "the idealism of the Kennedy years, the civil rights campaign and all that followed." Now, he writes, the roles have reversed: "My own country has emerged, albeit still with many faults, as a beacon of racial reconciliation and co-existence that gives me at least some sense of personal fulfillment in my evening years, while my old moral lodestar, the U.S., has slipped into an abyss of moral degeneracy, of political lies and casuistry, of torture and cruelty and of a contempt for human rights and human decency that violates your own supposedly sacred Constitution. For me emotionally, it is as though the United States has become the old South Africa." Sparks is particularly dismayed by "the craven obsequiousness of the U.S. media" with regard to the war in Iraq. "On my several visits to the U.S. in the course of this war I have been disgusted by all the cheerleading for your 'brave boys in Iraq,' the flagwaving and the craven desire to be seen as patriotic that wiped out the journalistic duty to ask the tough questions about why the war was being fought, who told the lies, or even to portray the carnage that was taking place inside Iraq."

"In May 2006, freelance journalist Sarah Olson interviewed Army First Lieutenant Ehren Watada for Truthout.org and National Radio Project's 'Making Contact.' Watada is the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse orders to deploy to Iraq (he considers the war to be illegal), and as a result became the first military officer charged with public dissent since 1965. Lt. Watada faces four counts of conduct unbecoming an officer. The Army has subpoenaed Olson to testify in Watada's court martial, which is slated for the first week of February, in order to verify the statements Watada made to her, which are already a part of the public record." Here is the interview with Sarah Olson.

Chavez at the United Nations

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez will not renew the broadcast concession of Radio Caracas Television's (RCTV's) current owners. José Miguel Vivanco of Human Rights Watch called the decision "clearly a case of censorship" meant "to punish a medium for its opposition to the government." The Venezuelan government has faulted RCTV's racy telenovelas as indecent daytime programming and says the TV station actively supported the 2002 coup, which resulted in several deaths. RCTV "encouraged the [2002] protests and, once Chavez was ousted, celebrated his removal," reports the Washington Post. "But when the interim government that replaced him began to collapse, RCTV and other stations blacked out the news -- which the government says was done to keep Venezuelans from rising up against the coup organizers." Writing from Caracas for CounterPunch, George Ciccariello-Maher says the non-renewal "is simply not about free speech." Venezuela's "media responsibility law" is in line with broadcaster responsibilities in other countries, he says. Ciccariello-Maher also points out that RCTV "broadcasts will continue," but its concession "will instead be granted to either another private corporation, a mixed public-private corporation, a collective of workers, or some other combination."

Two scientists who served on the British government's Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) but later resigned from it have gone public with harsh criticisms. Professor David Ball and Dr. Keith Baverstock accuse Prime Minister Tony Blair of "manipulating" the CoRWM for "political ends." The CoRWM approved of underground storage for high-level nuclear waste; the scientists say this conclusion "was used to push through the Cabinet the decision to go ahead with a new generation of nuclear power stations." They also expressed concern that four of the 12 CoRWM members had financial ties to consultancies working for the committee. Baverstock warned that CoRWM's compromised process "has resulted in continued and unnecessary exposure of the public to the ongoing risk of temporarily stored nuclear waste, surely a legitimate public concern in this age of terrorism." Parliamentarian Alan Simpson said, referring to how to handle waste from nuclear power plants, "No one has a clue how to do this safely."

"Spocko," an obscure blogger living in San Francisco, has shaken up some of the merchants of hate on right-wing KSFO-AM radio. For the past year, he has been e-mailing the station's advertisers with audio clips from its shows and asking sponsors to consider what they're supporting. Some sponsors have pulled their ads, after hearing clips like one of KSFO's Lee Rodgers suggesting that a protester be "stomped to death right there. Just stomp their bleeping guts out." Other controversial clips were from Melanie Morgan, the chair of the pro-war group Move America Forward. In retaliation, the station's corporate owner, ABC/Disney, threatened legal action that forced Spocko to shut down his site (it's now back up), while simultaneously accusing him of attempting to censor their speech.

Elias Buchwald, a founder of Burson Marsteller, recently ran a four-day training session for 17 high-level Israeli spokespersons from government agencies. The session was organized by 5W Public Relations, the American Jewish Congress and the Israeli Foreign Ministry. "We want Americans to relate to Israel emotionally, not just impersonally," Buchwald said. "The point should be 'Israel has what you like' by using warm, evocative and colorful language." Reporter Gary Rosenblatt summarized Buchwald's advice as "keep it short, make it direct, and no matter what the question, know beforehand what message you want to get across and stick with it." The media consul at the Israeli consulate in New York, David Saranga, described Israel's PR problem as being that "Americans miss the human face of Israel, they perceive of us as militaristic and very religious but they miss the lens of culture [and] education".

Gazprom supplies a quarter of Europe's gas needs Photo: Gazprom

Gazprom, the Russian gas company that supplies approximately one quarter of Europe's gas needs, is planning a PR and lobbying campaign in Europe and the U.S. to improve its image, after it cut off gas supplies to the Ukraine in 2006 and Belarus in 2007. Kommersant reports that Gazprom Export, a subsidiary of Gazprom, is negotiating with a consortium comprising the PBN Company, Hill & Knowlton and the polling firm Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates for a three-year contract worth $11 million. "In the West, Gazprom is closely associated with the name of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his political circle. The company wants to position itself differently," an anonymous source said. The Kremlin is also considering another PR and lobbying campaign to boost its credibility in the West. Short-listed firms include Patton Boggs, Hogan & Hartson, Weber Shandwick, Burson Marsteller, Barbour Griffith & Rogers, Ruder Finn and Hill & Knowlton.

"The Federal Communications Commission will accept applications for new full power non-commercial educational (NCE) FM radio station licenses sometime this year, perhaps in late spring," writes Carmen Ausserer. "Typically, the FCC gives between one and three months notice before opening the filing window, which will likely last only five days." The process will end a six-year FCC freeze on new full-power licenses. "The window is a rare opportunity for non-profits and educational institutions," notes Ausserer. Organizations including Prometheus Radio Project, Native Public Media, the National Federation of Community Broadcasters and Radio for People Coalition are raising awareness about the opportunity and providing information to interested groups. But "the FCC can only accept applications for frequencies that do not conflict with existing stations, which, for the most part, no longer exist within 30 miles of the largest 100 cities in the U.S."

TV Marti logo

As noted in a previous Spin, the U.S. government-funded stations Radio and TV Marti will be broadcast in South Florida, in an attempt to reach Cuban audiences. Since domestic broadcasts of U.S. government-funded propaganda are illegal, Congressman Bill Delahunt is planning hearings on the matter. Delahunt "is the ranking Democratic member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs' new Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee," reports PR Week. "While no definitive date has been set for the hearings, the nonpartisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics ... has called for the Government Accountability Office to investigate" the broadcasts on the Florida commercial stations Radio Mambi 710 AM and WPMF-38. A spokesperson for the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors, which oversees the Martis and other government-funded media, stressed that the Florida broadcasts are necessary to overcome "the jamming of Radio and TV Marti" in Cuba.

Progressive magazine editor Matt Rothschild reports, "Sarah Olson was on a big story, and now she has become a part of it. The freelance journalist was one of the first reporters to cover the story of Lt. Ehren Watada, who is facing a court martial for publicly refusing to deploy to Iraq. Watada has denounced the war as 'illegal and unjust.' Now the army has subpoenaed Olson and another reporter to testify at Watada’s trial. ... She believes this case could set an awful precedent. 'It has the potential to be devastating to the independence of the press and to the press’s ability to report on dissenting voices particularly,' she says. 'When individual reporters know they’ll be hauled in front of a military court and have their credibility eviscerated, they’re going to be far less likely to go to the trouble of reporting on subjects that are unpopular with the current Administration or in other ways controversial.' "

As opposition to the war in Iraq grows within the military, the government is taking steps that appear aimed at intimidating reporters covering GI dissent. In a subpoena from "the President of the United States to Sarah Olson," the independent radio journalist is directed to appear February 5 - 9 at Fort Lewis in Washington state to testify in the military's prosecution of Lieutenant Ehren Watada, the first commissioned officer to refuse deployment to Iraq. If Sarah Olson refuses to appear and testify she could herself be charged as a felon and could be jailed and fined. Olson condemns the military's request writing that "the U.S. Army has cobbled together portions of my interview with Lieutenant Watada and these statements comprise the foundation of one charge of conduct unbecoming an officer. ... It is my job as a professional journalist to report the news, not to act as the eyes and ears of the government."

After two articles exposing the contradiction between the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funding health programs while maintaining $8.7 billion in investments in companies involved in socially damaging projects, the foundation initially signalled a change in policy. In a statement on its website, the foundation flagged a review of "our approach to investments" and that there would be a "process by which Bill and Melinda Gates analyze and review these issues." The day after the foundation changed tack, with a letter to the editor of the Los Angeles Times describing it as "naive to suggest that an individual stockholder" could prevent damage caused by the companies they invested in. "Changes in our investment practices would have little or no impact on these issues," wrote the foundation's CEO, Patty Stonesifer.

In a briefing to a group of Wall Street fund managers, Exxon Chairman and Chief Executive Rex Tillerson reportedly stated "we recognise that we need to soften our public image. It is something we are working on." An oil industry analyst with the Oppenheimer stockbroking firm pointed out in a briefing note that while the company's "tone has changed, the substance remains the same." Exxon remains a major contributor to a range of think tanks which contest the necessity to take action to limit global warming. The week after Tillerson's comments, the company announced that it was requesting a federal appeals court to reconsider a December 2006 decision requiring the company to pay $2.5 billion in damages for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil tanker disaster in Alaska.

"Consumers' viewing and reading habits are so scattershot now that many advertisers say the best way to reach time-pressed consumers is to try to catch their eye at literally every turn," the New York Times writes. Subsequently, ads are turning up in the strangest places: airport security lines, subway turnstiles -- even chicken eggs. "Ubiquity is the new exclusivity," said ad executive Linda Kaplan Thaler. "Alternative media" ad spending totaled $387 million in 2006, up from $24 million in 2000. One market research firm "estimates that a person living in a city 30 years ago saw up to 2,000 ad messages a day, compared with up to 5,000 today." And "more is on the horizon," including video screens in doctors' offices, taxicabs and elevators. Ad executive Connie Garrido said non-traditional advertising is "very good for awareness because it's out there, it's in your face, and you can blanket a marketplace. ... It's one of the last mass mediums."

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, U.S. public diplomacy chief Karen Hughes and the Public Relations Coalition held a "Private Sector Summit on Public Diplomacy" on January 9 and 10. PR executive Richard Edelman suggested de-politicizing the U.S. image. "Take it away from the part of the media that covers politics," he counseled. "Kick it off the front page and move it to the business page or other parts of the newspaper." As an example, Edelman pointed to Israel's focus on its technological advances. He also suggested engaging foreign bloggers. Marketing executive Mary Lou Quinlan said, "It's time to get back to the basic values that made our brand great, things like respect for freedom and individual rights. ... The next president needs to be a better listener." PR Week reports that the meeting involved "about 150 corporate communications executives," as well as Hughes aide Dina Powell. An account of the meeting will be published in late January, including "10 'action steps' that companies can take to support U.S. government public relations efforts."

Wal-Mart had already announced an attempt to rewrite its public image through the hire of ex-political operatives and creation of a social responsibility ad campaign. The company has now released an internal study claiming that the overwhelming majority (90 percent) of its workers have health coverage--just not Wal-Mart's health coverage. About 40 percent of workers get insurance from some other program (through spouses, federal entitlement or aid programs, parents). The company also acknowledges that less than two-thirds of eligible workers sign up for Wal-Mart's plan, well below the industry average of 75 percent. Far from a good example, says Wake-Up Wal-Mart spokesman Nu Wexler, the study shows "Wal-Mart's health-care plan remains a raw deal for its employees." The New York Times' treatment of the company's announcement nabbed the headline, "Wal-Mart Says Health Plan is Covering More Workers," while the Post headline states "Many Workers at Wal-Mart Don't Use Its Health Plans."

The federal treasury will pay out $36 million over five years to the Burson-Marsteller PR firm to promote redesigned $5 and $100 bills. According to the Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the bills need to be promoted and explained to businesses, the media and others in order to ensure that new security features, including "optically variable ink" and watermarks are fully understood. The contract requires that some of the $36 million build on the Treasury's "Color of Money" campaign, which promoted $10, $20 and $50 notes. Among those crucial public promotions: "Uncut sheets of fresh crisp new $1.00, $2.00, $5.00, $10.00 and $20.00 greenbacks right off the press will delight someone special in your life. They make an especially unique gift for that 'hard-to-buy-for' person."

Voluntary carbon trading markets in the United States have doubled in volume over the past year, demonstrating that companies and consumers increasingly seek to offset their role in creating greenhouse gasses by fostering reductions in carbon elsewhere. But the market lacks quality control and a reliable referee. Some companies may take more interest in pushing brand identity than good works. A survey of 30 companies commissioned by the nonprofit, Clean Air-Cool Planet (which promotes its own sponsors in the report), gave mostly low marks to the types of carbon offsets used by participating companies. "[T]here is the potential benefit of educating people through offsets," Dan Becker, director of the Sierra Club's global warming division, told the Monitor. "On the other hand, if people view offsets like papal indulgences that allow you to continue to pollute, then it's probably not a good idea." Of course, if the U.S. had participated in the Kyoto Protocol, there already would be a national policy, national (rather than private) standards and potential penalties for not participating in carbon offsets.

Rick Snell, the editor of Freedom of Information Review and lecturer in law at the University of Tasmania, notes the contrast between Australia and New Zealand's experience of freedom of information legislation, which both enacted in 1983. In New Zealand, Snell writes, "it was greeted with hails of dismay by public service unions, lawyers and academics." In Australia, the then Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, extolled access to government information as "a public right". Twenty years later though, the roles have reversed. "There are numerous examples of the New Zealand government publishing documents on the net that would have Australian ministers and senior public servants reaching for the smelling salts. From climate change to the economy to immigration, New Zealand routinely publishes material Australian bureaucrats would fight to the death to keep secret. And somehow, their government keeps functioning, and no one complains government suffers when the public gets to see more than the press release."