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Sun, 15 Jan 2006 13:30:54 -0500 |
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Norma wrote a great response to Betsy Hart. I suspect that Ms. Hart's original article may have
been motivated not by her personal frustration with bans on formula gift bags but by her
relationship with lobbyists for the formula industry. I am not claiming this is true, but that I
suspect it.
I suspected something similar when several conservative columnists wrote very scathing pieces
about the World Health Organization when WHO was pushing for warning labels on containers of
formula. It seemed quite a coincidence that so many columnists devoted themselves to that topic
and that they all covered pretty much the same talking points. Ms. Hart's article seems to cover
the same talking points I read from a formula industry spokesperson regarding the gift-bag ban.
Many of us remember that a number of columnists in the past few years have been exposed as
having taken money from the goverment to write positive opinion pieces about government
programs. Again, I am not claiming that this is happening now. I am suggesting that when a
major industry such as the formula industry sees something that threatens business (warning
labels on their product, a ban on give aways at hospitals), it is completely plausible that they
would fight back by contacting pro-business columnists and asking them to help shape public
opinion.
As such, I wonder how we should respond. My sense is that rather than arguing against these
opinion pieces point-by-point, we should carefully raise questions such as those I have raised,
and at least get it into the public consciousness that something rotten could be going on.
I also think Norma's response is fantastic. Rather than taking Ms. Hart's piece seriously, it
parodies it and in doing so reveals its absurdity. Some people will, of course, be put off by such
parody, but at least a few will have an "a-ha" moment.
All best,
Kerry Ose
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