WELCOME TO THE WEEKLY RADIO SPIN, A LOOK AT THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS, BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE CENTER FOR MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY. I’M DIANE FARSETTA. AND I’M JUDITH SIERS-POISSON. IN OUR TOP SPIN, WHY NOT KICK YOUR OPPONENTS WHEN THEY’RE DOWN? AT LEAST, THAT SEEMS TO BE THE ATTITUDE OF THE EMPLOYMENT POLICIES INSTITUTE, AN ANTI-LABOR FRONT GROUP. AFTER REPUBLICANS ACCUSED ACORN OF VOTER FRAUD, THE EMPLOYMENT POLICIES INSTITUTE RAN A FULL-PAGE AD IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, ACCUSING ACORN OF UNION BUSTING, FAILING TO PAY ITS EMPLOYEES THE MINIMUM WAGE, AND MIS-USING GOVERNMENT GRANTS. WHAT IS THE EMPLOYMENT POLICIES INSTITUTE? IT’S ONE OF SEVERAL FRONT GROUPS RUN BY INDUSTRY LOBBYIST RICK BERMAN. FOR YEARS, E-P-I HAS FOUGHT ACORN CAMPAIGNS TO INCREASE THE MINIMUM WAGE AT THE STATE AND NATIONAL LEVELS. E-P-I SAID IT RAN THE AD TO SHOW THAT ACORN’S (QUOTE) “CORRUPT AND FRADULENT PRACTICES” (END QUOTE) DON’T STOP AT VOTER REGISTRATION. ACORN DENIES THE INDUSTRY-FUNDED GROUP’S ACCUSATIONS. (DIANE?) A WELL-CONNECTED EXILE GROUP, WITH HIGH-LEVEL REPUBLICAN PARTY CONTACTS, SPENDING LOTS OF MONEY ON PUBLIC RELATIONS. SOUND FAMILIAR? EXCEPT THIS TIME, IT’S NOT IRAQ – IT’S IRAN. THE COUNCIL FOR A DEMOCRATIC IRAN RECENTLY HIRED THE LIVINGSTON GROUP, A LOBBYING AND P-R FIRM. THE VIRGINIA-BASED GROUP PAID THE FIRM THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS, IN THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2008 ALONE. ITS LIVINGSTON GROUP LOBBYISTS INCLUDE LAURI FITZ-PEGADO, WHO HELPED SELL THE FIRST GULF WAR WHEN SHE WORKED AT HILL AND KNOWLTON. THE FOUNDER AND HEAD OF THE COUNCIL FOR A DEMOCRATIC IRAN IS DR. BEHROOZ BEHBUDI. HE’S AN OIL ENTREPRENEUR WHO WAS BORN IN IRAN, AND IS A PERSONAL FRIEND OF IRAN-CONTRA FIGURE OLIVER NORTH AND CHRISTIAN COALITION FOUNDER PAT ROBERTSON. IN 2007, BEHBUDI WARNED THAT IF IRAN’S LEADERS DIDN’T CHANGE THEIR STANCE SOON (QUOTE), “WHAT HAPPENED TO SADDAM HUSSEIN, WILL HAPPEN IN IRAN, TOO” (END QUOTE). (JUDITH?) THEY SEEM LIKE ADS FROM A LIBERAL ADVOCACY GROUP. http?//www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n0tQysyCsw (use first 11 seconds of ad) BUT – SURPRISE! – THE ADS WERE ACTUALLY PAID FOR BY THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY. WHY IS AN INDUSTRY GROUP SPENDING MORE THAN THIRTEEN MILLION DOLLARS ON ADS PRAISING DEMOCRATS WHO SUPPORTED A CHILDREN’S HEALTH-CARE BILL? FOR TWO REASONS – THE DRUG INDUSTRY KNOWS IT DOESN’T HAVE A GOOD PUBLIC IMAGE, AND DEMOCRATS WILL LIKELY INCREASE THEIR CONTROL OF CONGRESS IN 2009. THE MAIN DRUG INDUSTRY GROUP, PHRMA, HAS ALSO SHIFTED ITS POLITICAL DONATIONS. FOR YEARS, PHRMA DONATED OVERWHELMINGLY TO REPUBLICANS. IT’S NOW SPLITTING ITS CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS BETWEEN THE TWO MAJOR PARTIES. PHRMA’S ALSO WORKING WITH UNIONS, TO SUPPORT UNIVERSAL HEALTH-CARE BILLS AT THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVELS. THE HEAD OF AN INDUSTRY-FUNDED HEALTH-CARE ADVOCACY GROUP EXPLAINED (QUOTE), “I THINK THEY REALIZE THAT THE ONLY WAY TO HAVE ANY SERIOUS RESPECT … IS TO START WORKING TOWARD SOLVING THE HEALTH-CARE PROBLEMS” (END QUOTE). (DIANE?) THE UNITED STATES HAS BEEN HARSHLY CRITICIZED FOR SOME OF ITS P-R CAMPAIGNS IN IRAQ. NOW, AN IRAQI POLITICAL PARTY IS LAUNCHING ITS OWN P-R EFFORT IN THE UNITED STATES. THE ISLAMIC SUPREME COUNCIL OF IRAQ PLANS TO SPEND TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS A MONTH, TO EDUCATE U.S. POLICYMAKERS AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC ABOUT (QUOTE) “IRAQI ISLAMIC CULTURE.” THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION SUPPORTS THE PARTY, WHICH IS A POWERFUL PART OF THE OPPOSITION TO SHIITE CLERIC MOQTADA AL-SADR’S GROUP. THE ISLAMIC SUPREME COUNCIL OF IRAQ IS ALSO SUPPORTED BY THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT. (JUDITH?) AND NOW IT’S TIME TO PLAY “SIX DEGREES OF SPIN AND FAKIN’,” OUR LOOK AT THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN MEDIA MANIPULATORS. EARLIER, WE MENTIONED LOBBYIST RICK BERMAN. BERMAN’S LOBBYING FIRM WORKS FOR MAJOR FOOD, ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO COMPANIES, MANY OF WHICH ALSO FUND HIS FRONT GROUPS. THE FRONT GROUPS, IN TURN, PAY BERMAN’S LOBBYING FIRM FOR “MANAGEMENT SERVICES.” BERMAN ONCE EXPLAINED THAT HIS GOAL IS TO DISCREDIT THE LABOR, ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH GROUPS OFTEN AT ODDS WITH HIS INDUSTRY CLIENTS. ACTIVISTS (QUOTE) “DRIVE CONSUMER BEHAVIOR ON MEAT, ALCOHOL, FAT, SUGAR, TOBACCO AND CAFFEINE,” HE EXPLAINED, SO HE MUST (QUOTE) “ATTACK THEIR CREDIBILITY.” BERMAN’S MANY FRONT GROUPS INCLUDE THE EMPLOYMENT POLICIES INSTITUTE, THE CENTER FOR CONSUMER FREEDOM, THE AMERICAN BEVERAGE INSTITUTE, AND THE CENTER FOR UNION FACTS. (DIANE?) THAT’S THIS WEEK’S EDITION OF THE WEEKLY RADIO SPIN. FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT THE CENTER FOR MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY’S WEBSITE, AT WWW-DOT-P-R-WATCH-DOT-ORG.