Overview

The public relations industry is not just about celebrity gossip. This book shows how, whenever big business is threatened, spin doctors, lobbyists, think tanks and front groups are on hand to push the corporate interest, often at the public's expense. Written by leading activists and writers, this book reveals the secrets of the PR trade including deception, the use of fake 'institutes', spying and dirty tricks. The impact can be devastating -- when the public is denied access to the truth, the results are rising inequality and environmental catastrophe. Exposing the misdeeds of famous companies including Coca Cola, British Aerospace, Exxon and Monsanto, and revealing information about the covert funding of various apparently independent thinks tanks and institutes, the authors offer a guide to campaigns that can help us roll back corporate power and resist deceptive PR.

Full Product Details

Author:   David Miller ,  William Dinan
Publisher:   Pluto Press
Imprint:   Pluto Press
Dimensions:   Width: 13.50cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 21.50cm
Weight:   0.414kg
ISBN:  

9780745324449

ISBN 10:   0745324444
Pages:   296
Publication Date:   20 June 2007
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Introduction: Unearthing Corporate Spin by William Dinan and David Miller - Strathclyde University Department of Geography and Sociology Part 1: Global Corporate Power and Corporate Spin 1. Public Relations and the Subversion of Democracy by David Miller and William Dinan - Strathclyde University Department of Geography and Sociology 2. Achilles Has Two Heels: Crises of Capitalist Globalisation by Leslie Sklair - London School of Economics and Political Science (Sociology) 3. A Tour of the United Kingdom's Public Relations Industry by Chris Grimshaw - Corporate Watch Part 2: How Corporations Use Spin to Undermine Democracy 4. Powers Behind the Throne: Washington's Top Political Strategists by Laura Miller - Center for Media and Democracy 5. Spinning Farmed Salmon by David Miller - Strathclyde University Department of Geography and Sociology 6. Exxon's Foot Soldiers: The Case of the International Policy Network by Andy Rowell - Freelance writer and investigative journalist 7. Biotech's Fake Persuaders by Jonathan Matthews - Founder of GM Watch and Lobbywatch 8. Fighting Dirty Wars: Spying for the Arms Trade by Eveline Lubbers - Investigative Reporter, Amsterdam 9. Manufacturing a Neoliberal Climate: Recent Reform Initiatives in Germany by Ulrich Mueller - LobbyControl, Germany Part 3: The Subterranean World of the Power Brokers 10. Globalising Politics: Spinning US 'Democracy Assistance' Programmes by Gerald Sussman - Portland State University 11. Behind the Screens: Corporate Lobbying and EU Audiovisual Policy by Granville Williams - Media and Journalism, University of Huddesfield 12. Spinning Money: Corporate Public Relations and the London Stock Exchange by Aeron Davis 13. The Atlantic Semantic: New Labour's US Connections by William Clark - Strathclyde University Department of Geography and Sociology Part 4: Fighting Back: Campaigning Against Spin and Rolling Back Corporate Power 14. Unmasking Public Relations by Bob Burton - Freelance Journalist, Canberra, Australia 15. Corporate Power in Europe: The Brussels 'Lobbycracy' by Olivier Hoedeman - Corporate Europe Observatory, Amsterdam 16. Killer Coke by Andy Higginbottom - Kingston University in London Conclusion: Countering Corporate Spin by David Miller and William Dinan Contributors Index

Reviews

'Corporate Spin is one of the great toxins of democracy and a free society. This is a foundational book to educate us about this sleazy realm and equip us to do battle with it.' Robert W. McChesney, author of 'Communication Revolution: Critical Junctures and the Future of Media''Essential reading for anyone concerned with the rise of corporate power and with seeing the world as it really is.' Mark Curtis, journalist and author of 'Unpeople: Britain's Secret Human Rights Abuses'

Author Information

William Dinan is Lecturer in Sociology in the Department of Geography and Sociology at Strathclyde University, specialising in corporate PR and lobbying. He is a co-founder of www.spinwatch.org.David Miller is Professor of Sociology in the Department of Geography & Sociology at the University of Strathclyde. He has previously edited Arguments Against G8 and Tell Me Lies: Propaganda and Media Distortion in the Attack on Iraq for Pluto Press. He is a co-founder of www.spinwatch.org.

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