Nancy Pelosi and Democratic leaders in the U.S. Congress are preparing to "embark on a publicity blitz starting in November to combat a dismal 25 percent approval rating," reports Jonathan Kaplan. "Democrats are keenly aware of the public's frustration. Many believe that they were elected to bring an end to the war in Iraq, and they have been unable to do that because of an unwieldy Senate and President Bush's opposition to any change in strategy in Iraq." Party leaders are encouraging Democrats to highlight the "lobbying and ethics reforms, an increase in the minimum wage, a massive increase in student aid, legislation to implement the 9/11 Commission recommendations," and other measures passed with bipartisan support. As part of the PR effort, Pelosi "began holding weekly press conferences" in early October, "and has been appearing on more news and talk programs."

Andrea Gawrylewski reports that an email from an "ACS insider," who insisted on anonymity, alleges that bonuses paid to executives of the American Chemical Society are tied to the profits of the publishing division and that this is why the society is opposing open-access publishing. In January, Nature revealed that the Association of American Publishers had hired PR crisis management guru Eric Dezenhall to devise a campaign against proposals for free public access to publicly funded scientific research, and that ACS had attended a briefing on the campaign. Rudy Baum, the editor-in-chief of Chemical & Engineering News -- an ACS publication -- "declined to say whether his bonuses were linked to publishing profits." However, former ACS staff told Gawrylewski that it was well known that senior managers' bonuses were linked to profitability. The chair of the ACS board of directors, Judith Benham, rejected the suggestion that the society's opposition to open access publishing was linked to executive compensation.

The Hygiene Council, a "think tank" created and funded by the cleaning products company Reckitt Benckiser, touts the need for "good hygiene practice" in the "home and community." Ruth Pollard reports that the council "is pushing products that contain the expensive -- and potentially damaging -- antibacterial additive, triclosan." Aside from promoting commonsense measures to prevent infections such as the washing of hands and appropriate preparation and refrigeration of foods, the council is enthusiastic about the chemical treatment of household surfaces. "Commonly touched surfaces should be regularly disinfected with products such as LYSOL Disinfectant Spray," the council states on its website. Peter Collignon, the director of infectious diseases at Canberra Hospital, believes that promoting the use of products containing triclosan was "a marketing exercise with no real benefit" that would "do nothing to stop multi-resistant bacteria in hospitals. If anything it may actually contribute to it." Triclosan products are used in hospitals as a disinfectant, particularly against staphlycoccus.

Rupert MurdochIn a speech on the changing role of journalism, John Hartigan, the chairman and chief executive of News Limited, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, argued that "we live in times when press freedom -- the freedom of speech -- is more restricted than in living memory. And I don't say this lightly." Early in his speech, Hartigan said, "Let me deal with the elephant in the room -- Rupert Murdoch. ... Does he tell us what he thinks? He sure does. If he's not happy are we left guessing? No way!" As to how to cover politics or major business stories, Hartigan insisted Murdoch doesn't "issue blanket instructions" to his editors. Hartigan also singled out for criticism the announcement by Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock of a review of Freedom of Information laws. "His decision to ask the Law Reform Commission to conduct a review on limited terms of reference is a disgrace," he said.

Buffeted by bad press from recalls of dangerous drugs and public bitterness over high drug prices, the drug industry has decided to cure its ailing image by sponsoring its own TV talk show, hosted by Billy Tauzin, the former GOP congressman who now heads the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). Its "Healthcare Campfire with Billy Tauzin" is "the latest -- and possibly boldest -- part of a multi-pronged effort to burnish the drug industry's battered public image," writes Jeffrey Young. "The episodes, broadcast as paid advertisements but billed as public affairs programs, borrow the format of talk shows such as NBC's 'Today.'" In addition to interviews, the show features reports by PhRMA staff on new medicines, which "look like a news story you would see at a local news station," according to PhRMA Senior Vice President Ken Johnson.