|
|
|
Toxic Sludge is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry
Sure, many of us in this modern world are cynical The most cynical may even suspect that the news is manipulated and massaged by sponsors, that corporations act in their best interests, that political campaigns are determined not by votes, but by bucks, and that we don't get "all the news that's fit to print" but instead, "all the news that gets the ink". But even the most media-savvy amongst you will be awed by the behind-the-scenes descriptions of the Public Relations industry in action so masterfully described in this book. If you want your eyes to be opened, open them upon the pages of this book. (But remember: there are some very important people counting on you, and they really would prefer that you didn't ever hear about this book, much less buy it.).
Price: $7.00
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Trust Us We're Experts: How Industry Manipulates Science and Gambles with Your Future
Fearless investigative journalists Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber ( Toxic Sludge Is Good for You! and Mad Cow U.S.A.) are back with a gripping exposé of the public relations industry and the scientists who back their business-funded, anti-consumer-safety agendas. There are two kinds of "experts" in question--the PR spin doctors behind the scenes and the "independent" experts paraded before the public, scientists who have been hand-selected, cultivated, and paid handsomely to promote the views of corporations involved in controversial actions. Lively writing on controversial topics such as dioxin, bovine growth hormone, and genetically modified food makes this a real page-turner, shocking in its portrayal of the real and potential dangers in each of these technological innovations and of the "media pseudo-environment" created to obfuscate the risks. By financing and publicizing views that support the goals of corporate sponsors, PR campaigns have, over the course of the century, managed to suppress the dangers of lead poisoning for decades, silence the scientist who discovered that rats fed on genetically modified corn had significant organ abnormalities, squelch television and newspaper stories about the risks of bovine growth hormone, and place enough confusion and doubt in the public's mind about global warming to suppress any mobilization for action. Rampton and Stauber introduce the movers and shakers of the PR industry, from the "risk communicators" (whose job is to downplay all risks) and "outrage managers" (with their four strategies--deflect, defer, dismiss, or defeat) to those who specialize in "public policy intelligence" (spying on opponents). Evidently, these elaborate PR campaigns are created for our own good. According to public relations philosophers, the public reacts emotionally to topics related to health and safety and is incapable of holding rational discourse. Needless to say, Rampton and Stauber find these views rather antidemocratic and intend to pull back the curtain to reveal the real wizard in Oz. This is one wake-up call that's hard to resist. --Lesley Reed.
Price: $6.64
[Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq
"Weapons of Mass Deception reveals: How the Iraq war was sold to the American public through professional P.R. strategies ""The First Casualty"": Lies that were told related to the Iraq war. Euphemisms and jargon related to the Iraq war, e.g. ""shock and awe,"" ""Operation Iraqi Freedom,"" ""axis of evil,"" ""coalition of the willing,"" etc. ""War as Opportunity"": How the war on terrorism and the war on Iraq have been used as marketing hooks to sell products and policies that have nothing to do with fighting terrorism. ""Brand America"": The efforts of Charlotte Beers and other U.S. propaganda campaigns designed to win hearts overseas. ""The Mass Media as Propaganda Vehicle"": How news coverage followed Washington's lead and language. The book includes a glossary - ""Propaganda: A User's Guide"" - and resources to help Americans sort through the deceptions to see the strings behind Washington's campaign to sell the Iraq war to the public.".
Price: $0.96
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Facing the Text: Content and Structure in Book Indexing
Based on Do Mi Staubers popular and empowering workshop, the book discusses such standard topics as subheadings, cross-references and indexability, in the context of particular texts and indexes. Hundreds of examples illustrate the many practical strategies that Do Mi has drawn from her own practice in social sciences and humanities indexing. The book goes beyond abstract rules to confront the unique needs of each text and index, and provides guidelines to help novice and experienced indexers alike make common-sense, flexible, and reader-centered decisions.You will learn such strategies as: addressing the main topic of the book in your index structure pinning down the elusive main argument of a scholarly book using local main topics to understand the structure of the text deciding which topics should be indexed understanding subheadings with a new typology created by Do Mi Stauber and Nancy Mulvany choosing subheadings for long spans and locator strings deciding when to use the authors wording, when to modify it, and when to create a new wording connecting topics in the index through double-posting and cross references distinguishing among indexing strategies for scholarly books, textbooks and reference books.
Price: $35.00
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The Best War Ever: Lies, Damned Lies, and the Mess in Iraq
The war in Iraq may be remembered as the point at which the propaganda model perfected in the twentieth century stopped working: the world is too complex, information is too plentiful, and-as events in Iraq reveal- propaganda makes bad policy. The Best War Ever is about a war that was devised in fantasy and lost in delusion. It highlights the futility of lying to oneself and others in matters of life and death. And it offers lessons to the current generation so that, at least in our time, this never happens again. As the team of Rampton and Stauber show in their first new book since President Bush's reelection, the White House seems to have fooled no one as much as itself in the march toward a needless (from a security perspective) war in Iraq. As the authors argue, one of the most tragic consequences of the Bush administration's reliance on propaganda is its disdain for realistic planning in matters of war. Repeatedly, when faced with predictions of problems, U.S. policymakers dismissed the warnings of Iraq experts, choosing instead to promulgate its version of the war through conservative media outlets and PR campaigns. The result has been too few troops on the ground to maintain security; failure to anticipate the insurgency; and oblivious disregard, even contempt, for critics in either party who attempted to assess the human and economic costs of the war. Even now that withdrawal seems imminent, however, the administration and its allies continue their cover-ups: downplaying civilian deaths and military injuries; employing marketing buzzwords like "victory" repeatedly to shore up public opinion; and botched attempts, through third-party PR firms, at creating phony news. The Bush administration entered Iraq believing that its moral, technological, and military superiority would ensure victory abroad, and that its mastery of the politics would win support at home. Instead, it found a morass of problems that do not lend themselves to moralistic, technological, or propaganda-based solutions..
Price: $0.49
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
The Rule of Hats
There was a village thought old and wise which did not believe in compromise, rules were rules and that was that ...especially when it came to hats. Imagine living in a place where everyone is required to wear the same style hats. Adults and children alike go about their days wearing hats that are too big, too small or just not right for them. But ...rules are rules and that is that. For generations, that was what it was like for the people in this quaint village. Then one day a mysterious stranger named Chapeau arrived wearing a different and unusual hat. Join him as he tries to convince the townspeople to embrace not only his differences, but also their own..
Price: $14.99
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Toxic Sludge is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry. (book reviews): An article from: St. Louis Journalism Review
This digital document is an article from St. Louis Journalism Review, published by SJR St. Louis Journalism Review on February 1, 1996. The length of the article is 441 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. Citation DetailsTitle: Toxic Sludge is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry. (book reviews) Author: Bill Lueders Publication:St. Louis Journalism Review (Magazine/Journal) Date: February 1, 1996 Publisher: SJR St. Louis Journalism Review Volume: v26 Issue: n183 Page: p13(1) Article Type: Book Review Distributed by Thomson Gale.
Price: $5.95
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Mad Cow U.S.A.
Mad Cow U.S.A. is not the book to read before you go out for a steak. In fact, it's not really a book to read before eating anything; this chronicle of government cave-in to pressure from the food industry just might scare away your appetite. Authors Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber argue that both the American and British governments colluded with beef producers to suppress important facts about interspecies transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or "mad cow disease"--facts that might have prevented gruesome deaths. Could a British-style BSE epidemic happen in America? In a 1996 TV talk show, Oprah Winfrey attempted to ask the same question, only to find herself slapped with a lawsuit by a group of Texas cattlemen. Their grounds: the so-called agricultural product disparagement laws currently on the books in 13 states; these laws prohibit people from questioning the safety of any agricultural product, shifting the legal burden of proof from the food industry to its watchdogs. What happens when anyone who speaks out about problems with our food supply can be sued into silence? Rampton and Stauber fear grave consequences for public health, and they make a convincing case against these laws--and, inadvertently, for vegetarianism..
Price: $10.35
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Plastics in Automotive Engineering: Exterior Applications
This unique and timely book provides theoretical as well as practical reviews of novel polymer applications for automotive engineering, covering materials selection, simulation, prototyping and manufacturing. Nineteen industrial case studies illustrating current polymer applications for the exterior of passenger cars and commercial vehicles complete this book.
Price: $89.97
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
Banana Republicans: How the Right Wing is Turning America Into a One-Party State
The bestselling authors of Weapons of Mass Deception expose how the "right-wing conspiracy," as represented by the GOP and its mouthpieces in media, lobbying groups, and the legal system, is undermining dissent and squelching pluralistic politics in America. The U.S. economy is on the ropes, fear grips the nation, and we are embroiled in two overseas military quagmires with no end in sight. Outside its borders, the United States is hated and feared as never before. For the first time in living memory, a single party-the Republicans-controls every major institution of the federal government: the White House, the Supreme Court, the Senate and House of Representatives-not to mention the "fourth branch of government," the mass media. How did this come to pass? Banana Republicans reveals how the national GOP maintains its hold on power through the systematic manipulation of the electoral system, the courts, the media, and the lobbying establishment. The book examines: * The legacy of the Florida ballot scandal, and how it has played out in the recall movement in California-and other states, where recall efforts are under way-and in the redistricting controversy in Texas. * How a GOP echo chamber systematically spreads its views through conservative media giants-e.g., Clear Channel, Fox-and highly placed columnists, journalists, and opinion makers. * How the Bush administration is loading the federal courts with a generation of demagogues, and smearing the names of legislators who attempt to stand in its way. * How House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has strong-armed traditional lobbying firms into exclusively hiring Republicans, so that even K Street is political, rather than merely opportunistic. * How the GOP has equated dissent with treason-e.g., Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld accusing war critics of abetting terrorism. * How the Bush administration uses its power to punish dissent, such as the leaking of a CIA agent's name to the press, and unprecedented lawsuits against activist organizations such as Greenpeace..
Price: $0.01
[ Notify me when price goes down.]
|
|
|
|
|