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Center for Science in the Public Interest

1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20009
Phone 202-332-9110 | Fax 202-265-4954 | Email cspi@cspinet.org

Connections

Adbusters Both Adbusters and the Center for Science in the Public Interest endorsed a project of the Ralph Nader-founded Commercial Alert. The National Ad Slam Contest awarded cash to schools that made “the best and most creative effort to remove advertising and commercialism from school premises.”

Center for Food Safety In 1997, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the parent organization of the fear-mongering and grossly misnamed activist group the Center for Food Safety, teamed up in opposition to a Food and Drug Administration ruling that removed much of the red tape usually involved in declaring food products “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS).

Center for Media & Democracy Foodspeak is a coalition of activist groups, organized by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), who fear legal retribution for attacking food and food companies. They want food disparagement laws off the books and off their backs, along with a blank check for anything they might say -- even when their comments are false and intended to damage the interests of a food company. Along with a few dozen other activist groups that want to dictate your food choices, the Foodspeak coalition includes the Center for Media and Democracy. CSPI and the Center for Media and Democracy also endorsed Ralph Nader’s “National Ad Slam Contest.”

EarthSave International Earthsave International belongs to a coalition, organized by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), called Foodspeak. The coalition’s mission is to fight (or dodge) food disparagement laws and achieve blanket immunity for anything they might say -- however reckless or misleading.

Environmental Media Services Art Silverman is the Senior Vice President and Creative Director at Fenton Communications, the Washington PR firm that uses Environmental Media Services as a media “front” for its paying clients. Prior to joining Fenton, Silverman was the communications director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). While at CSPI, Silverman was best known for labeling fettucine alfredo a “heart attack on a plate.”

Environmental Working Group In a July 2001 report issued by Environmental Defense (entitled “Food for Thought”), a coalition of anti-consumer activist groups argued that the federal government should abandon crop subsidies, diverting billions of dollars instead into “conservation” programs. The short list of groups co-authoring (and heavily promoting) this report included both the Environmental Working Group and the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Media spin and interview placement of “experts” was handled by Environmental Media Services. The Environmental Working Group is also a member of CSPI’s Foodspeak coalition, which seeks to avoid liability for any false accusations they might make against food companies and eliminate (or evade) food disparagement laws.

Farm Animal Reform Movement Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) executive director Michael Jacobson is a “National Council” Member of the animal-rights Farm Animal Reform Movement (FARM). Jacobson also sits on the advisory board of the Great American Meatout, an annual vegetarian love-fest operated by FARM.

Foundation on Economic Trends The joyless calorie counters at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Luddites at the Foundation on Economic Trends (FOET) come together on this principle: people should eat less meat. CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson and FOET president Jeremy Rifkin both serve on the National Council of the "Great American Meatout," an annual event run by the Farm Animal Reform Movement, an animal rights group.

Greenpeace The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and Greenpeace USA are both clients of leftist Washington PR firm Fenton Communications. David Fenton’s flacks were responsible for the Alar-on-apples fundraising scam in 1989, SeaWeb’s 1988 swordfish boycott, and the StarLink biotech corn fiasco. Greenpeace belongs to a coalition of food activist groups organized by CSPI called Foodspeak, which is dedicated to overturning and dodging food disparagement laws. Foodspeak wants blanket immunity for anything its member organizations might say against food companies -- even when their comments are false and intended to damage the interests of a food company.

Humane Society of the United States The Humane Society of the United States, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), and a dozen other activist organizations came together to create Keep Antibiotics Working, which aims to scare the public about the use of antibiotics on farm animals. But even before the formation of this misguided coalition, HSUS and CSPI -- along with other groups -- pressured Bayer (without any real science on their side) to roll back the use of Baytril in livestock. HSUS also belonged to CSPI’s Foodspeak coalition of anti-food activists who wanted to avoid liability for false claims against food companies, and attempted to overturn food disparagement laws. Also, HSUS “Factory Farming” Campaign Manager Paul Shapiro began his activist career as a CSPI intern.

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy The Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy are both members of the Trans Atlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD), a coalition of U.S. and E.U. “consumer groups” that also includes Ralph Nader’s Public Citizen and the US Public Interest Research Group. TACD’s mission is to inject radical points of view into the international debate on “issues such as GM foods, growth hormones, the precautionary principle, consumer protection in e-commerce, data privacy protection, fair trade and eco-labelling, access to medicines, and so on.” Both CSPI and IATP are also members of the fear-mongering Keep Antibiotics Working coalition, which aims to needlessly scare the public about the responsible use of antibiotics for farm animals.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) are both card-carrying leaders of the new alcohol Prohibition movement. MADD and CSPI collectively lobby on issues like raising beer taxes and restricting adult beverage advertisements. They even commission polling data together. Both groups are heavily funded by the anti-alcohol Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Natural Resources Defense Council Both the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) are clients of leftist Washington PR firm Fenton Communications. Fenton has perfected the art of the food scare, including NRDC’s Alar-on-apples fundraising scam in 1989, SeaWeb’s ridiculous 1988 swordfish boycott, and the more recent StarLink biotech corn fiasco. NRDC also joins CSPI as a part of the Keep Antibiotics Working coalition, which aims to scare the public about the use of antibiotics on farm animals. And NRDC belongs to CSPI’s Foodspeak coalition, an alliance of activist groups who use junk science and misleading sensationalism to attack food companies, but don’t want to be held responsible for it.

Organic Consumers Association The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Organic Consumers Association endorsed the “childhood obesity agenda” of Ralph Nader’s Commercial Alert. That agenda includes banning from schools foods with hydrogenated vegetable shortening, including graham crackers, peanut butter, margarine, cheese, and salad dressing. It would prohibit the sale of so-called “junk food” on school property (making bake sales a thing of the past), and “prohibit the distribution of junk food as a reward or prize for good behavior or exemplary performance.” The agenda also demands that schools serve more “local and organic products.” CSPI and the Organic Consumers Association also endorse Commercial Alert’s “National Ad Slam Contest.”

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine The Center for Science in the Public Interest’s (CSPI) Coalition for the Prevention of Alcohol Problems counts the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) as a member, and PCRM has co-signed some of CSPI’s anti-alcohol letters to Congress. PCRM president Neal Barnard and CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson were listed as two of the three “experts” available for comment on the press release for the 2003 “Great American Meatout.” Nevertheless, CSPI is not blind to PCRM’s agenda. In 1992, CSPI’s Bonnie Liebman told the Chicago Tribune: “I think this organization is deceiving people in order to further animal rights and in order to convince people to become vegetarians.”

Public Health Advocacy Institute About a half dozen Center for Science in the Public Interest-affiliated speakers are scheduled to address the 2004 Public Health Advocacy Institute conference on "Legal Approaches to the Obesity Epidemic." CSPI president Michael Jacobson also spoke at the 2003 conference, which was "intended to encourage and support litigation against the food industry." Joining him in 2004 are Margo Wootan, Steve Gardner from "CSPI Litigation," and CSPI "legal advisor" Ellen J. Fried. CSPI science advisory board member Kelly "Big Brother" Brownell will also be returning in 2004 for a second speaking appointment, as will former CSPI board member Marion Nestle.

SeaWeb The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and SeaWeb are both clients of leftist Washington PR firm Fenton Communications, the birthplace of the modern food scare. Among Fenton Communications’ “accomplishments” are the StarLink biotech corn fiasco, NRDC’s Alar-on-apples fundraising scam, and the unnecessary “Give Swordfish a Break” campaign orchestrated for SeaWeb.

Sierra Club The Sierra Club joined the Center for Science in the Public Interest and other food scare organizations in the "Keep Antibiotics Working" (KAW) coalition. KAW, in reality a project of a slick Washington PR firm, seeks to frighten people away from the conventional meat supply with claims that the use of antibiotics in livestock leads to antibiotic resistance in people. There is a strong scientific consensus that KAW's claims are overblown.

Union of Concerned Scientists The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), along with the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), is one of the main players in the Keep Antibiotics Working coalition, which opposes the use of antibiotics in farm animals. UCS belongs to CSPI’s Foodspeak coalition -- an organization dedicated to protecting its member groups from the liability they would face from intentionally misrepresenting the truth about the food you eat. Foodspeak hopes to end (and find creative ways around) food disparagement laws. On a completely unrelated note, in 1982 the two groups joined a coalition protesting the cancellation of the left-wing Ed Asner’s “Lou Grant” TV show on CBS.

Waterkeeper Alliance Both the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Robert F. Kennedy Jr.-run Waterkeeper Alliance are members of the Keep Antibiotics Working Coalition, which aims to scare the public about the use of antibiotics on farm animals.

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