Strollerderby : PR

Leaked Minutes: BPA Makers Fight Back

Miriam Axel-Lute — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:00:00 GMT

The public health blog Effect Measure has gotten their hands on a set of leaked minutes from a meeting of representatives of industries that use the toxic endocrine-mimicker bisphenol-A (BPA) on how to counter the negative media about it.

It's rich: They figure getting a scientific spokesperson won't be possible (gee, why?), but are hoping to find a young pregnant mom to do it. They want to emphasize the loss of conveinence to poor folks and busy mothers, appeal to our desire for choices, and make us worry about losing jobs. They don't figure they can win on Facebook and complain about already having spent too much money on this.

In fact it's so rich that I have to acknowledge that while I have no reason to doubt its veracity, if I were writing a satire of how I expected such a meeting to go, it would look just like that. Only it would be shorter and less detailed.

So y'all: You are forewarned. Someone's going to try to tell you BPA is good for you and your kids. It'll be just as insincere and self-serving as it sounds.

Photo of BPA-free sippy cups CC Tiffany Washko, via Flickr.

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OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

Brett Singer — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:00:00 GMT

I don't want to be mean here. I really don't. But I'm starting to feel sorry for Nadya Suleman and her children.

I really think she needs help. I don't mean financial help. Help from a doctor not named Phil.

In a new video blog posted exclusively at RadarOnline, she says "I want to be private." She means that she doesn't want people to know where she lives, because clearly she doesn't want to be, you know, actually private. "Being in the field I'm in, I know there's a lot of emotionally disturbed people in the world…I have trust issues."

She's not worried about anything, she's not overwhelmed. She's hiring help. The other moms are supportive, everything is FINE.

What?

You see her interacting with her children, who don't seem all that happy. The tape feels like an audition reel for a reality show.

Other highlights, in case you can't bear to watch the video:

-   New house, a rental. "I'm doing it myself," meaning no help from anyone. Unclear how it's possible to rent a 2800 square foot house with no job.
-    MSNBC says that the video "shows Suleman struggling to speak as one of her older six kids bites her, pulls her hair and slaps her in the face," but I didn't see anything terribly unusual. I mean, the kids don't look thrilled by the camera and are eventually ushered out of the room (presumably to a very weary grandmother, but you don't see that). Still, the kids' behavior looks like a kid trying to get mommy's attention.
-   This part I will just quote: "Suleman said her older children are already jealous of the octuplets. When a friend showed the kids a picture of their new siblings, 'they hit the picture,' Suleman said." Oy vey.

Also bizarre are her hand-written blog entries. In this one she talks about meeting Dr. Phil. (Because that's really what a mother of 14 should be thinking about.) By not typing her entries for her, Radar clearly wants us to see Nadya's nutty side. (Read the PDF file here.)

It's all fairly disturbing, actually. Hard to look, hard to look away.

Source: MSNBC, RadarOnline

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

"Angels in Waiting" Apparently Still Waiting

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

Brett Singer — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 21:05:00 GMT

According to RadarOnline, Nadya OctoMom Suleman has rejected an offer from the group Angels In Waiting to "provide her with a temporary new home for six months."

Angels offer was pretty sweet. According to Radar: "around the clock individualized care by pediatric nurses and other early intervention professionals for her octuplets and their six other siblings." This is in addition to giving them A PLACE TO LIVE. Remember that the house she currently lives in -- her parents' -- is facing foreclosure.

Gloria Allred is all red with frustration -- actually, I don't know if that's true but I wanted to write that. Sorry. We'll learn how she feels later today when the attorney to the weird gives a press conference.

I can understand not accepting help from people for various reasons. In this case, I think Suleman should take what she can get, especially since she's already asking for help from anyone who is willing. So why turn this one down? Is it that she doesn't like Allred? She also seems to be rejecting offers of help from Denis Beaudoin, who said he'd give Nadya some money even if he wasn't the father. Can she really afford to be so, you know, choosy?

Commenter FoxyMoxie (thanks for the tip!) says that Allred will discuss the "'disturbing' phone conversations" she has had with the OctoMom. I mean, will this thing ever end?

Source: RadarOnline

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

"Angels in Waiting" Apparently Still Waiting

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

Brett Singer — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:47:00 GMT

Remember Gloria Allred? No? Lucky you.

She's an attorney with a knack for representing clients involved with high-profile cases, such as Amber Frey (Scott Peterson), and the family of Nicole Brown Simpson (O.J.). She also made headlines when she took the controversial stance of questioning Michael Jackson's parenting skills. (That was sarcasm.) She actually went so far as to request that California Child Protective Services investigate how he treats his kids. (That, unfortunately, is true.)

Well, the media-loving lawyer is back and she wants to help out OctoMom Nadya Suleman's kids. MomLogic reports that Allred has a "plan to 'provide for the medical and emotional needs'" of all 14 members of her brood.

Through the charity Angels In Waiting, Allred says that the family can receive the help that they need without relying on public funds, although they will need private donations.

While it's obvious that Allred is a publicity hound (there are other, less polite words one could use, of course), Angels In Waiting seems to be a worthy organization. (Note: I haven't done a lot of research into the group, just a cursory skimming of their web site.) So in theory there is a positive outcome from Allred's actions. Still, why not be a champion for children all the time? Why does it only matter when there's a camera around? The OctoMom story is fascinating, but it's also very sad. The last thing those kids need is someone else trying to get famous off of them.

What do you think – is Allred legit? Or should she, you know, quit? (Apologies for the extremely dated reference.)

Image/Source: MomLogic

OctoMom Receives Death Threats

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

High Fructose Corn Syrup Is the Same As Honey?

Adrienne Martini — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Some of my best friends are honest PR professionals. I know such critters exist. But honest PR professionals must not work for the high fructose corn syrup industry. How do I know this?

Witness their recent campaign to rescue HFCS from consumers who would rather their sweeteners didn't require a complex chemical process. Their argument? The FDA says HFCS is natural; therefore it is. If memory serves, the FDA also attempted to declare ketchup a vegetable.

This PR campaign has been unleashed because more American parents are reading the labels of the foods they buy and rejecting those that list HFCS as an ingredient. If nothing else, it's heartening to know that consumer choice is having an impact on the corn industry.

What's disheartening is the lengths that said industry will go to in order to convince that same consumer of a correlation (honey and maple syrup are the same as HFCS) that is only vaguely true in a very limited set of definitions.

Open Letter of the Month: Dear PR People...

Kelly Mills — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 22:35:00 GMT

Greetings PR people!

First, let me say I'm so glad you love the site, I appreciate that compliment. And I know your job can't be all easy, sending e-mails to bloggers and not knowing if you will be well-received or if some rogue is gonna mock the product or event you are pitching, though I suppose publicity is publicity. So let me just say a couple things and you can take or leave it, but I do mean this kindly.

First, I should warn you that I'm not such a fan of receiving e-mails that start, "Dear Mommy Blogger." I know many are fine with that term, but even my kid doesn't call me mommy (I'm "mama") so there you go. And believe it or not, we actually have real live men working here who have spawned children, and while some of them are better mothers than I'll ever be, it might behoove you to address your stuff using the more inclusive "parent blogger" or even (gasp) the name of our blog.

Same goes for products you think are a "mother's best friend" or "a boon to moms everywhere" or whatever. We like the dads here, and we'd like to think dads everywhere are participating in childrearing. Sticking with just the moms is limiting your market. Also, telling us your product was invented by a mom or moms is fine, but you should know that does not put you in the minority at this point, so it's kinda lost the selling power.

Now, some parent bloggers like it when you demonstrate you read the blog by mentioning a post or two. I don't care so much about that myself, but if you do plan to do this, double check your e-mail to avoid sending something that literally says "I like your post on x" because it wouldn't be the first time someone forgot to fill in the blank and it makes us all feel silly. The faux-friendly tone sometimes is a little grating too: I like it when you get to the point without pretending we snuggle each other. And it should probably go without saying that a somewhat sexist riff on a cleaning product or stereotyped site mommies will adore or a kit for clueless dads is probably not going to be well-received. I mean, send us things by all means, but some of this is just fair game for us.

Finally, it's great that Gwyneth Paltrow uses your solid gold rattle or JLo is gaga over your high thread count wipes, but that is not such a selling point for me personally. All it says to me is that you sent out free stuff to celebrities, and don't they already have enough free stuff? Now, if you told me you donated a hundred of whatever you are pitching to needy parents, that might sway me. Celebs? Not so much.

Anyhow, have a great day, and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Kelly