June 27, 2007

Each day companies, organizations, governments and individuals make decisions that affect their reputation, credibility and key stakeholders.

Read Hyde Park's assessment of recent examples of PR prowess and pitfalls...

THE GOOD

African American Celebrities Kick Off Campaign to Test One Million for HIV - The Black AIDS Institute, Screen Actors Guild and American Federation for Television and Radio Artists brought together Regina King, Jimmy Jean-Louis, Samaki Walker and a cadre of black celebrities to get tested and raise awareness of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the African-American community in association with National HIV Testing Day on June 27.  The Los Angeles event kicked off a campaign to get one million Black Americans tested for HIV in the next year.  The incidence of HIV/AIDS in the African American and other minority communities remains disproportionately high.  These efforts to draw attention to prevention, early testing and treatment are important and merit support.

THE BAD

"Mock"-o-late Instead of Real Chocolate? - A proposed U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulation could change the definition of chocolate.  Industrial confectioners, including the Chocolate Manufacturers Association, want to be allowed to replace cocoa solids and cocoa butter with cheaper fats and still call the resulting product "chocolate."   While this change would likely increase manufacturers' profitability, consumers will miss out on the melt in your mouth goodness of the real thing, which is produced by cocoa butter.  The new "mock"-o-late could also contain greater levels of trans and saturated fats.  The public relations implications of taking the chocolate out of chocolate would be realized if the FDA approves the regulation change.  As serious chocolate lovers, we hope FDA does the right thing and leaves our chocolate alone. 

THE UGLY

Science Should Trump Emotion When Children's Vaccinations Are at Risk - The federal vaccine court in Washington, D.C. began hearing arguments on the contentious issue of whether some early childhood vaccines might have caused autism in thousands of children.  Thimerosal, a mercury based preservative formerly used in some vaccines was discontinued for use in childhood vaccines in 2001.  No major, credible study has ever found a link between vaccination and autism, but some parents remain unconvinced.  We very much appreciate how emotional this issue is to many families, yet are concerned that the court proceedings and media attention may drive parents to stop vaccinating their children against preventable diseases like polio and measles. In this case, science and medicine should prevail.  More research needs to be conducted into the causes and treatment of autism to reassure parents of the benefits of vaccines and move this debate back into the realm of public health.

Michael Waxman is a Vice President at Hyde Park Communications.