| Rick Berman, a hired shill for the fast food, alcohol, and tobacco industries (among others), has something new to worry about: BermanExposed.org. The site was put together by CREW, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. It's about time somebody put together a comprehensive source on Berman and his many corporate front groups. I, for one, am sick to death of seeing his front groups quoted as legitimate sources week after week in newspaper articles. More info on Berman (highlights from the site) below. |
About Center for Consumer Freedom (Formerly Guest Choice Network)
Guest Choice Network founded in 1995 with Philip Morris seed money. GCN was formed in 1995 "to fight bans on smoking in restaurants and bars" and received considerable funding from tobacco companies, including $600,000 in seed money from Philip Morris. "The company said it needed a consultant who was both a 'hospitality industry insider as well as a legislatively astute individual,' according to documents collected as part of the multi-state lawsuit against tobacco companies. Under the 1998 settlement, the documents were made public. Philip Morris continued to give money to Berman for several years." In fact, according to Philip Morris documents, Berman has received at least $2,950,000 from the company.
GCN became CCF in 2001, shifted focus to food & beverage issues. Guest Choice Network changed its name to the Center for Consumer Freedom in 2001 and shifted its focus to "food and beverage issues, raised by concerns about obesity, mad cow disease and genetically modified products."
CCF: "primary propaganda arm" for food & dairy industry. According to the American Prospect, the group is "the primary propaganda arm for the food and dairy industries in the emerging battle over the politics of food."
Berman admits bulk of CCF's funding comes from food & restaurant companies. Berman admits that CCF is "financed by the food and restaurant industries" and that some of those who fund CCF are also clients of his lobbying firm. However, he "has always declined to name the specific companies that support Consumer Freedom. He said in an interview that there were roughly 100 companies, including some that control very large brands, but that identifying them would serve no purpose." Berman said the organization collected about $2.7 million in contributions in 2003.
Who Has CCF Attacked?
- Mothers Against Drunk Driving: MADD is a group of "professional fund-raisers" who try to "scare us away from even responsible drinking."
- Rudy Guiliani: His proposal to confiscate the vehicles of convicted drunk drivers was called a "car-theft ring."
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: "For nearly three decades, [CDC] has been whipping up fear over food while remaining virtually unchallenged by the press or the scientific community. By generating more heat than light, [CDC] helps create fear . . . over . . . food products." (They said this because CDC warned about salmonella food poisoning.)
- Anyone worried about second-hand smoke: Berman wrote about a "lack of evidence that second-hand smoke causes cancer" on his website.
Who Funds CCF
The funders are secret but through leaked document we know they include Coca-Cola, Wendy's, Tyson, Cargill, RTM Restaurant Group (Arby's), HMSHost Corp, Brinker Int'l, Pilgrim's Pride, and Outback Steakhouse, among others.
Their Tactics
CCF wages PR war against "nannies." According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, CCF "wages public-relations warfare against animal welfare organizations and other groups that it contends act as self-appointed 'nannies' to the American public."
CCF sponsored website attacks against MADD. CCF sponsors a website, ActivistCash.com, that features in-depth profiles of other non-profits and groups, including Mothers Against Drunk Driving, that included information on their funding and key players. "Despite their innocent-sounding names, many of these organizations are financial Goliaths that use junk science, intimidation tactics, and even threats of violence to push their radical agenda," the site says. Berman has alleged that some groups have "a violent side to them" and vowed to attempt to shut down firms whose activities run counter to CCF's goals.
CCF launched 2005 ad campaign challenging "myth" of obesity crisis. CCF purchased ad space in Washington DC's Metro rail during the summer of 2005 and ran ads charging that the obesity epidemic in the United States is a myth propagated by the "food police."
2004 CCF ad campaign was critical of nutritionists. In 2004, CCF "ran television ads that featured the Soup Nazi of 'Seinfeld' fame ordering overweight people to eat salad -- a clear jab at what the group considers pushy nutritionists who are trying to suck the joy out of eating."
CCF attacked researcher's study on childhood obesity. CCF "trashed a seminal 2001 Harvard study co-authored by Dr. David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children's Hospital Boston, as 'dubious science.'" The study found that every additional can of soda kids drink daily increases their risk of becoming obese by 60 percent. Ludwig asserted that his own research techniques were "commonly used," and that his "methodology has been validated, and can provide important and useful information if used accurately." He also said that Berman and his staff never contacted him to clarify his research before widely attacking it.
CCF Maintains Fishscam.com website. Fishscam.com aims to dismiss concerns about mercury in fish. In a news report covering FishScam.com's efforts to dissuade consumers from fearing mercury poisoning from fish consumption, Berman's tactics were described as "hyperbolic, aggressive attacks. He once told a reporter his strategy is to "shoot the messenger". |
