November 16, 2012

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From Pro Publica:
From Russia With PR
Several opinion columns praising Russia and published in the last two years on CNBC�s web site and the Huffington Post were written by seemingly independent professionals but were placed on behalf of the Russian government by its public-relations firm, Ketchum.

The columns, written by two businessmen, a lawyer, and an academic, heap praise on the Russian government for its �ambitious modernization strategy� and �enforcement of laws designed to better protect business and reduce corruption.� One of the CNBC opinion pieces, authored by an executive at a Moscow-based investment bank, concludes that �Russia may well be the most dynamic place on the continent.�

There�s nothing unusual about Ketchum�s work on behalf of Russia. Public relations firms constantly peddle op-eds on behalf of politicians, corporations, and governments. Rarely if ever do publications disclose the role of a PR firm in placing an op-ed, so it�s unusual to get a glimpse behind the scenes and see how an op-ed was generated.

What readers of the CNBC and Huffington Post pieces did not know � but Justice Department foreign agent registration filings by Ketchum show � is that the columns were placed by the public-relations firm working on a contract with the Russian government to, among other things, promote the country �as a place favorable for foreign investments.�

In at least one case, a Ketchum subcontractor reached out to a writer and offered to place his columns in media outlets. The writer, Adrian Pabst, a lecturer in politics at the University of Kent, said that his views were his own and that he was not influenced or paid by Ketchum.

A spokesman for CNBC, which published the pieces on the Guest Blog section of its website, declined to comment. A Huffington Post spokesman said the column placed by Ketchum did not violate the site�s policy.

Ketchum spokeswoman Jackie Burton told ProPublica that when the firm corresponds with experts or the media on behalf of Russia, �consistent with Ketchum�s policies and industry standards, we clearly state that we represent the Russian Federation.�

Russia, often criticized for human rights abuses and corruption, paid handsomely for the public-relations work. From mid-2006 to mid-2012, Ketchum received almost $23 million in fees and expenses on the Russia account and an additional $17 million on the account of Gazprom, the Russian state-controlled energy giant, according to foreign agent filings.
Nothing illegal but still -- cutting and pasting spew from a Public Relations business is not reporting and should not be represented as such. Not that I take Huffington Post or CNBC for anything reliable anyway... Shades of Yuri Bezmenov Read here and here Posted by DaveH at November 16, 2012 6:13 PM
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