America's Power Army
{{#Badges: Front groups|CoalSwarm}} Formed in 2000 to develop astroturf support for coal-based electricity, Americans for Balanced Energy Choices (ABEC) promotes the interests of mining companies, coal transporters, and electricity producers. A domain name search reveals that ABEC's website is registered to the coal industry trade organization Center for Energy and Economic Development. (ABEC originally used the www.balancedenergy.org domain but later switched to a website titled America's Power).
From ABEC's website: "Americans for Balanced Energy Choices (ABEC) is a national, non-profit organization designed to promote a dialogue with community leaders across the U.S. on issues involving America's growing demand for electricity. ABEC will advocate in support of policies that strike the proper balance between protecting the environment and providing for continued economic growth and prosperity for America's working families.
"Because they recognize the essential role that electricity from coal plays in protecting the environment while providing over half of the electricity used each day in the U.S., America's coal-based electricity industry (producers, transporters, and electricity generators) have provided the primary initial funding for this worthwhile project." [1]
Contents
Activities
ABEC's promotion of coal-generated electricity ignores or downplays concerns about current industry emission levels and their links to health and environmental concerns.
Outreach by ABEC has included program underwriting on National Public Radio in the spring of 2002 promoting coal as America's energy source of the future. ABEC also produced a short subject video that played on United Airlines flights. According to ABEC, the video "discusses coal's role in providing reliable, affordable, and increasingly clean electricity for American homes, schools, and businesses."
Clean coal ads
According to Issue Ads @ APPC, ABEC's sponsored three TV ads that ran a total of 845 times in Washington, D.C. in 2002.
"One ad stated that Americans 'are learning that advancements in clean coal technologies are effectively making our environment cleaner.' According to a second ad, 'electricity from coal is an increasingly clean source of energy.' The ad said that according to the U.S. Department of Energy, 'new coal-based power plants built beginning in about 2020 may well use technologies that are so advanced that they'll be virtually pollution-free.' Another ad, which aired in 2001 as well as 2002, stated that over 50% of the American energy supply comes from coal. The ad advocated coal power as a principal energy supply, noting that $50 billion was invested in creating technologies that make coal power cleaner and safe for the environment."
In 2001, ABEC ran one TV ad a total of 940 times in Washington, D.C. "The ad, which also appeared in 2002, stated that over 50% of the American energy supply comes from coal. The ad advocated coal power as a principal energy supply, noting that $50 billion was invested in creating technologies that make coal power cleaner and safe for the environment."[1]
2008 presidential campaign outreach
In September 2007, ABEC released "requests for proposal," seeking public relations help "in targeting the public, politicians, interest groups, and the media" on the national level, and also in Pennsylvania and Nevada. In the proposals, ABEC stated "Nevada (DOC) is perhaps one of the most volatile states in the west regions for ABEC's industry," so its PR work in the state includes issues management, as well as presidential candidate outreach and identifying "cities and communities critical to helping shape policy at the grassroots level." ABEC's Pennsylvania (DOC) PR campaign is less intense, involving "regulatory / legislative communications," "grassroots assistance," and various types of media outreach. [2]
The National Journal reported that ABEC's budget for PR, advertising and "grassroots" organizing quadrupled, from $8 million to $30 million a year, from 2007 to 2008. "Two words sum up why" the coal industry and its allies "opened their checkbooks," wrote the Journal -- "global warming." [2]
In 2007, ABEC advertised during the CNN/YouTube Republican presidential candidate debates.
In January 2008, the Washington Post reported that ABEC "is waging a $35 million campaign in primary and caucus states to rally public support for coal-fired electricity and to fuel opposition to legislation that Congress is crafting to slow climate change." As of mid-January, ABEC had spent $1.3 million on ads in Iowa, Nevada and South Carolina. The ads talked about "clean coal" and "70 percent cleaner" coal plants, though those reductions have been mostly in non-greenhouse gases. [3]
ABEC also deployed staffers to the January 15, 2008, Democratic candidates' debate. "About 50 people, many of them paid, walked around as human billboards and handed out leaflets outside Tuesday's Democratic debate in Nevada with questions for voters to ask the candidates," reported the Washington Post. [3]
PR and lobbying
According to O'Dwyer's Directory of Public Relations Firms 2001, ABEC is listed as a client of the Denver-based MGA Communications. In its agency statement, MGA Communications specializes in "communications planning involving community involvement and education, sitings and compliance issues, public-private partnerships, 'green' product marketing, dispute resolution and crisis communications, media relations, primary research and marketing communications. MGA also has a substantial technology marketing and corporate reputation practice."
ABEC's president Stephen Miller is a registered lobbyists for ABEC on energy and environmental issues, according to Lobbyist.info. CEED and the Willard Group have also lobbied on behalf of ABEC.
Contact
Americans for Balanced Energy Choices
P.O. Box 1638
Alexandria, Virginia 22313
Phone: 1-877-358-6699
Web: http://www.americaspower.org
SourceWatch resources
External links
References
- ↑ "About ABEC", archived version dated August 30, 2004.
- ↑ Jump up to: 2.0 2.1 "Coal Group Seeks PR Firms," O'Dwyer's PR Daily (sub req'd), September 26, 2007.
- ↑ Jump up to: 3.0 3.1 Steven Mufson, "Coal Industry Plugs Into the Campaign," Washington Post, January 18, 2008.
Articles
- Mercury Releases from Power Plants, Environmental Media Services, June 28, 2001
- Americans for Balanced Energy Choices, Earthdayresource.org
- Rebecca Stanfield, Darkening Skies: Trends Toward Increasing Power Plant Emissions, U.S. PIRG Education Fund for Clear the Air, the National Campaign Against Dirty Power, April 4, 2002.
- EPA issuing rules on power plant mercury, USA Today, March 14, 2005.
- Rainforest Action Network, "Rainforest Action Network to Wall Street: No New Coal", Media Release, February 25, 2007. (Also via the Business Ethics Network website here).
- David Roberts, "'Even Santa is rethinking his position on coal!': Coal industry kicks off a PR campaign aimed at influencing lawmakers", Gristmill, December 19, 2007.
