Just got form letter reply from General Mills (re:Sinclair)

[FizzFuzz]

sorry if this is a dupe,
I just had to vent--what a crock of shit.

They "choose to stand with freedom of the press."
They say that the letters received calling for removing themselves from Sinclair broadcasting are asking them to "insert themselves" into news broadcasting. ?? I read the original letter as asking them to remove themselves from Sinclair due to the NON-newsworthy nature of the programming in question; there seemed to be no call to ask G-Mills to "insert" any opinion into programming.

Is it just me or is this typical GOP spin?

Funny, too, how they emphasize their "family oriented" image.

Perfect:family-oriented station supports lying war mongering propagandist media conglomerate.

[Ruby Romaine]

1. Cascadian Farms (Organic Fruit & Veg) is a General Mills Company

[Ruby Romaine]

2. and Haggen-Daz

[FizzFuzz]

6. I'll have to make sure to boycott them, then.

I thought about replying to their form letter, but I doubt it would get read. Its obvious where they stand. I don't watch TV anyway, though I do strongly suppoert the protest against the Sinclair ethic -er I mean lack thereof.

[MatrixEscape]

3. Great then ...

I know what to equate their logo, name, and products with.

Thanks to those who are noting products other than the cereal I won't be buying ANYMORE. Bye-bye, General Mills.

Now to find out what subsidiary labels and products to put on my no-buy list for when I go shopping.

[anarchy1999]

4. It's so easy to just say no, it's so easy, it's so easy!

"Cheney yourselves"! It's so, easy, it's so easy.......

You all knpw the song, don't you.

[MasonJar]

5. I left them a message last night with an actual person who said

she would pass it on. I reminded them that the Sinclair Co. demeaned Freedom of Speech when it forbade its stations from running the Nightline program about the dead soldiers.

[FizzFuzz]

7. oh thanks, good point. Shows what a crock that form letter was. n/t

[GoSolar]

8. Thanks for the info.

I won't be buying any Cascadian Farms products anymore. And I used to buy a lot of their frozen veggies.

My dad called the Betty Crocker folks and the woman who answered was a rude freeper-type who said something to the effect that they were
"proud" to sponsor the anti-Kerry program. I won't be buying any Crocker products either.

[FizzFuzz]

9. funny how its these "family-values" dinosaurs, so terrified of progress

who want so desperately to maintain a phony image of a regime that in reality wants to give them some change like they never thought possible.

[GoSolar]

11. Indeed!

Like your icon FizzFuzz! Haven't seen her in a while.

[FizzFuzz]

12. thanks!

I like her.
Even got to meet her many many years ago. :D

I'm a feminist and I tend to be loud about it, so when I came aboard here, I thought she was a good choice.

[GoSolar]

16. That's cool

I saw her speak at a Women's Conference in Baltimore a few years ago.

I have read several of her books (and of course, MS Magazine), and even given them to male friends to read. Many guys really appreciate her writing. :)

[Eloriel]

10. Nothing whatsoever to do with Freedom of the Press

Our First Amendment guarantees ONLY against GOVERNMENT interference with the press or individuals' rights to say what they want -- and has nothing whatsoever to do with what private parties do about speech or corporations (which have legal "personhood") either.

You come into my house and start spouting rhetoric I don't like, I damn well do have the right to make you stop and/or kick you out. Not a First Amendment issue.

Admin here at DU can "censor" anything they choose -- it's privately owned and that wouldn't be goveernment censorship. NOT a First Amendment issue.

Corporations have every right to pick and choose what they will or won't support with their advertising dollars, and if none of them ever supported News Outlet X because they don't like its political leanings (or any other reason), that is NOT a Freedom of Speech (First Amendment) issue.

If advertisers demand that a newspaper not cover their company negatively (and they often do -- overtly or more subtly), it's outrageous, but it's not a Freedom of Speech / First Amendment issue.

Lotta people think that they have "Freedom of Speech" rights all over the place -- and I see this sentiment expressed at DU now and then. Couldn't be farther from the truth. They only have the right to speak without government interference (in most cases, not all), but there is NO right for everyone to insist on being heard. (Else, the NYT would print my Op Ed pieces, I could force any publisher I wanted to publish a book I wrote, etc.)

BTW, some of the "speech" that is censored by the government includes lies in advertising, incitement to riot, conspiracy to commit a crime, yelling "fire" in a crowded theater, threatening the president of the U.S., etc.

[FizzFuzz]

13. thanks Eloriel

yes, my gut said G-Mills' "freedom of speech" gambit to protect their self-interested asses felt phony to me, but I don't have any legal knowledge to justify the feeling.

wish they would just get honest: We are conservatives. We support free-market fundamentalism and militarism hidden behind the camoflage of family-values tropes as touted by this RWing administration, so take your fact finding liberal mouths elsewhere. PS, buy our cereal. So good, and good for you.

always good to read you :hi:

[MercutioATC]

14. Me, too (full text of reply)

Thank you for contacting General Mills.

Many consumers have written to share their views on this issue. Some have urged General Mills to use its influence as an advertiser to ensure that the media reports the news in an unbiased manner. Some have urged General Mills to continue advertising, and have threatened to withdraw support for our products if we alter our advertising plans. Passions run deep on both sides, particularly this close to an election.

Whenever possible, General Mills does strive to preview the programs on which our advertising appears. We do so to assure that we do not advertise on programs inconsistent with the family-oriented nature of our products. This works well with entertainment programs produced and available for advance screening, but pre-screening of news broadcasts is usually not possible.

Our view in this area is clear. We believe one of the fundamental elements of our society is the freedom of the press. Companies such as ours, in our view, should not attempt to influence, control or pre-empt the content of news through the leverage of advertising sponsorship. To do so would undermine that fundamental freedom.

From time to time, any one of us as viewers may consider a particular news story to be inaccurate or imbalanced. News organizations do err. Judgment is not always well applied. One major news organization recently acknowledged that errors were made in stories relating to the current presidential election. When such errors occur, certainly a price is paid in terms of reputation. But errors and questionable judgment are an acceptable price to pay, in our view, to assure the presence of a free and independent media in our society.

As viewers, each of us is free to make a choice. We can choose to patronize or not patronize programs with our viewership. We can choose to patronize or not patronize particular television stations, or even entire networks.

Similarly, advertisers may choose not to sponsor certain broadcasts, a particular network or specific publications because of their journalistic standards and judgment. But advertisers should not attempt to control or pre-empt news programming prior to broadcast or publication. That, in our view, would be inappropriate.

In this instance, as in the example cited earlier, passionate voices are calling on advertisers to insert themselves into the election by threatening to boycott those who remove or who do not remove their advertising.

We choose to stand with freedom of the press.

We welcome the views that you and others have shared with us. You may rest assured that we will remind the networks we sponsor that the integrity of their reporting reflects on the companies that advertise during their broadcasts.

Hopefully, you will understand our views – and the importance we place on a free press.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact us and share your views.

Sincerely,



General Mills



What a copout.....

[FizzFuzz]

15. Sent! to G Mills

Dear General Mills,

Why don't you just get honest. Instead of hiding behind business-speak diplomacy, just tell us all where you really stand, viz.:

We are conservatives. We support free-market fundamentalism and militarism hidden behind the camoflage of family-values tropes as touted by this RWing administration, so take your fact finding liberal mouths elsewhere.
PS, buy our cereal. So good, and good for you.

I was not impressed by your wishy-washy attempt to spin towards respecting the views of consumers, while pursuing action that clearly states where your allegiance actually lies (see above), I will be reading labels and joining the many boycotting you.

Sincerely,

**yours truly**, Democrat

Ha! They won't read it, but it felt good. :evilgrin: