Bill Truesdell wrote:

>Does any industry want a scare like Alar on apples. Which was really no
problem
>but still shut down many in the apple industry.


Can't let this one pass.  Alar was no problem?  The apple industry hired
the notorious and powerful PR firm, Hill & Knowlton, to spin the 'alar
scare' myth - a myth  perpetuated to this day by sloppy journalists and a
misinformed public.  There was plenty of evidence and government concern
long before 60 Minutes broke the alar story.

The 'alar scare' myth is a good example of how effective the PR industry
is, and points to the need to be ever vigilant about where our information
comes from and who has paid to produce the information.

The Centre for Media and Democracy has a great web page - PR Watch - which
should be a must read for all conscious humans.

http://www.prwatch.org/index.html

Check the article on the Environmental Working Group web page for the full
alar story. Following is an excerpt:


http://www.ewg.org/pub/home/Reports/Alar/alar.html

"why does the news media continue to repeat the myths and misconceptions of
Alar?

The answer is spin - a well-financed campaign, continuing to this day, by
the food and chemical industries to discredit the Alar story and rewrite
history. The key player in the campaign is the American Council on Science
and Health and its president, Elizabeth Whelan.

Soon after the Alar story broke on 60 Minutes, the apple industry began a
campaign to discredit it, paying the public relations giant Hill & Knowlton
more than $1 million for ads claiming children would have to eat "a boxcar
load" of apples a day to be at risk."

Sharon Labchuk