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Marc Cooper blogs at the LA Weekly on the most lavish and well-attended party that he (and many in the California delegation) have enjoyed so far in Boston. It was thrown by our old friends Fleishman-Hillard, the international PR giant that is for the moment persona non grata at L.A. City Hall. Not so at the Democrats' big bash:
Follow the money, they say. So I did. And it led right to the Wellfleet oysters and mango lobster cakes. And the grilled swordfish. And the stuffed figs and sushi. As well as the ham, turkey, pasta, grilled vegetables, smoked duck, jumbo shrimp, fresh clams, cream puffs, napoleons, and éclairs. And to the gourmet wine bar and two or three other free-flowing bars. Also to a couple of jazz bands, a handful of performing human mannequins, a spectacular view from the top of Boston’s highest skyscraper. And lapping all this up late last night, the California Congressional Delegation and much of the cream of Democratic “progressivism” – including Doctor Dean and House minority leader Nancy Pelosi.(see the pictures in the posting below) By day they rail against special interests. By night, they party down with them.This is no run-of-the-mill special interest. The money trail I refer to is the one the L.A. County District Attorney has just launched a criminal investigation to sort out. It emanates from the corporate PR powerhouse, Fleishman-Hillard which is at the center of a still unfolding influence-peddling scandal that is currently stinking up L.A. City Hall.
That didn’t stop California Democrats from declining the invitation from Fleishman-Hillard to party all night on the 50th “Skywalk” floor of the local Prudential Tower as it picked up the gargantuan tab for what was certainly one of the most lavish, outré spreads thrown this week.
Cooper blogs a few pictures here.
I sympathize with any reporter trolling for a convention story that hasn't been written 15 times yet. And there certainly is a good bit of irony that F-H sponsored CA Dems' big Boston to do.
But isn't it a bit alarmist to compare F-H's ickiness to the special interests that Dean, Pelosi, et al, rail against? Since when has the PR industry been the biggest threat to -- for lack of a better word -- the ordinary interest?
I'd be more concerned about Dems getting cozy with Visa and the credit card industry, or the oil industry, or the defense industry, or the pharmaceutical industry, or the logging industry, or the ... I could go on for a long time before I got to the threats posed by a bunch of greedy flacks.
Posted by: Concerned at July 27, 2004 06:10 PMAs a member of the industry, I find it disturbing that Pols who supposedly stand for something would associate with a bunch of soul-less, truth bending mercenaries. Who do you think delves up the strategies and stories of the companies you fear? FH, ofcourse.
Posted by: Robert Parry at July 28, 2004 04:00 PMAs a member of the industry, I find it disturbing that Pols who supposedly stand for something would associate with a bunch of soul-less, truth bending mercenaries.
I don't quite see it that way. I see conservative partners hooking up with conservatives, and progressive agents hooking up with liberals. Both can reside under the same agency roof, but rare is the individual who works both sides of the fence. There are a good many sluts for money in PR to be sure, but not a lot who convincingly can work for just anyone. You wouldn't have caught Mike Deaver or Pete Hannaford at a Democratic Convention.
When it comes to relating to pols, PR types can't bring a lot of passion or fine craft to their work if they don't nurture considerable political simpatico with whom they're representing. The more you script, the harder it becomes to script against your own beliefs.
Posted by: joseph at July 28, 2004 05:55 PMOn Tuesday night of the convention, Joe Scarborough was in front of Faneuil Hall in Boston interviewing people live and impromtu. Suddenly, a lady got in front of the camera and started yelling angrily at Scarborough "What about Lori, what about Lori?" Scarborough tried to push her out of the way but she yelled "What about Lori" 12 or so times before the camera cut away.
She was referring, of course, to Lori Klausutis, the young pregnant female assistant who died mysteriously in Joe Scarborough's office when he was a Florida congressman.
Needless to say, when Scarborough went back to the on-camera MSNBC news desk in the convention center, that incident was NOT mentioned at all! Nor have I seen any other network news show mention it. But it certainly was interesting to see an unplanned confrontation like that on LIVE television!
So that's what that was. I thought he was very flustered during that whole outside sequence.
Posted by: Kevin Roderick at July 29, 2004 12:07 AM
of LA Observed
Harold Meyerson has a good post on both the party and the medium that's turning Beantown to Blogtown:
http://www.laweekly.com/electionblogs/index_meyerson.html
Posted by: cd at July 27, 2004 04:08 PM