It may be a bit speculative but the Edelman PR firm could be beginning to earn the $28,000 a month it receives from the California stem cell agency.
This month we have seen two articles that generally reflect well on CIRM in prestigious magazines with influential readerships.
We wrote earlier ("Political Conflagrations" Aug. 9) about the piece in Fortune, which had something for both foes and supporters of CIRM. But overall, considering the nature of the readership of the magazine, it could be chalked up as a plus for CIRM, which Fortune indicated was fighting for its life.
The second piece appeared in New Scientist, a British magazine that bills itself as the world's leading science weekly. The publication has close to 150,000 circulation, and 16 percent of its readers either have or are studying for a Ph.d.
In the case of New Scientist, there was no contrary editor or writer to filter CIRM's message. Instead, it was a first-person piece by Robert Klein, chairman of the stem cell agency. He wrote:
"Our campaign, which included the largest coalition of patient advocacy and medical groups in US history, called on Californians to do what the federal government refused: give scientists sustained funding to study embryonic stem cells and how they might reduce the suffering and cost of chronic disease and injury.
"In November 2004, Californians answered that call unequivocally. Prop 71 was passed by an overwhelming majority, creating the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and earmarking $3 billion for research that could benefit an estimated 128 million people in the US alone. Yet despite this major victory, we knew our work had just begun."
He went on to point out, in a mild-mannered way, accomplishments and challenges facing the agency. The article, however, contains nothing surprising for readers of this web site.
The New Scientist piece has the earmarks of some good PR work, both in securing the placement and in the tone of the language. While we may not be able to credit Edelman with originating both the Fortune and New Scientist pieces, the firm probably ghost-wrote Klein's piece and handled the care and feeding of the folks at Fortune.
Access to the Fortune and New Scientist sites is restricted to subscribers, but if you are interested in receiving a copy of the pieces, send a request to djensen@californiastemcellreport.com.
You can read more about Edelman's arrangements with CIRM in the following items on this website: "$378,000 Contract" Aug. 3, "What's It Worth" July 15.
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