Re: Herald article on DJs paid to promote diet product

["Aaron 'Bishop' Read" <aread@speakeasy.net>]

At 04:04 PM 1/7/2003, dan.strassberg@att.net wrote:
>I believe that five or more years ago, before ADM changed its name from 
>Archer-
>Daniels-Midland, it did A LOT of wrong and was involved in what, for that 
>day,
>were some pretty horrendous court cases (which now pale in significance
>compared with the misdeeds of the brass at Enron and WorldCom). I can't 
>recall
>any specifics, but I don't think the problems had to do with juggling the
>books; I think ADM may have colluded with other companies to control 
>markets or
>fix prices--or something like that. Anyhow, as I recall, when all this came
>out, a lot of people were speculating about the company's ability to survive
>and the management began a massive PR campaign to restore the company's 
>image.
>I'm pretty sure that the celebrity endorsements were a product of that
>campaign. Of course ADM not only survived, it prospered. Score one for PR.
>--
>dan.strassberg@att.net

You aren't incorrect there, Dan...I remember a big hoopla about ADM 
involved in an unbelievably complicated price-fixing scheme on a global 
scale that was ridiculously hard to prosecute because the executives talked 
entirely in code when discussing it - I remember NPR reporting on it and it 
was fiendishly difficult to follow.  There were very little in the way of 
hard documents or evidence to prosecute with...something Enron should've 
taken a cue from!



_________________________________________________________
Aaron "Bishop" Read       aread@speakeasy.net
Fried Bagels Consulting   www.friedbagels.com
AOL-IM: ReadAaron         Brighton, MA 02135