BulletProofBlog the blog on crisis communications

Some people never seem to learn, even if a painful lesson is taught over and over again. One such lesson is that transparency is a prerequisite for effective advocacy. The latest example was uncovered by the New Bedford Eagle-Tribune newspaper in Massachusetts.

Among the many hundreds of letters to the editor the Eagle Tribune recently received, there were three that appeared to be from elderly people arguing for the preservation of the Medicare Advantage program - an alternative to traditional government funded Medicare coverage. The Obama administration is threatening to cut funding for the program. The private insurance companies who manage it are fighting back.

One tactic they are using is a grassroots campaign designed to mobilize seniors to pressure their members of Congress to preserve the program. Pretty standard stuff. But it turns out that several of the people who supposedly signed the letters in support of the program had never heard of it.

That' s called an "astroturf" campaign - as opposed to a genuine "grassroots" effort made up of real people with real concerns - and it' s a dumb move. Even small newspapers get lots of letters to the editor every day. Most follow sound journalistic practice, not to mention common sense, and check back with the signers of letters they plan to publish in order to confirm that they are who they say they are. In this case, the editors didn' t even have to work that hard.

An intern at the firm managing the advocacy campaign called the paper to inquire when one of the letters would be published. He identified himself as the grandson of the signer and got caught red handed. The paper had a field day with the story. The people behind the Medicare Advantage advocacy campaign ended up with egg on the face.

There is nothing wrong with aggressive advocacy. There is nothing wrong with mobilizing public opinion and helping ordinary people get their voices heard on Capitol Hill. That' s protected by the Constitution. But, as this story illustrates, trying to do it in secret is not only unethical, but usually turns out to be a waste of time and money.