Who is Dakota Communications?
The company is led by Kerman Maddox and Rick Taylor.
The irony — that they were collecting signatures outside a Home Depot, which is one of their clients — is just too rich.
You see, about a year ago, Dakota Communications was caught doing the same thing they're doing here (creating a false sense of community support the Expo Line at street level), in Sunland, regarding a Home Depot development the community universally opposed.
Strategy memos regarding their activities leaked to the media:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-norman/
In the memo, Taylor outlines a plan for dealing with the City Council hearing tonight.
“Our goal is to galvanize a critical mass of supporters,” the memo says, “to attend the hearing to demonstrate visible and vocal community support for the Home Depot.
“We will identifiy five local residents and business owners to provide testimony at the City Council meeting…
“We will prepare talking points for these individuals, focusing on how a new Home Depot store will positively benefit the local community and economy,” the memo says.
More Pledges
The public relations firm also promised “free media support” in the form of an op-ed for the Los Angeles newspapers, “a wonderfully sincere and compelling story about the Home Depot’s commitment to Los Angeles in the aftermath of the 1992 riots and one that has yet to be told.”
The price tag for all this activity?
$24,100, including $17,000 to hire “recruitment/organizers.”
Sound familiar?
Anyone catch Michael Jones, Crenshaw Chamber of Commerce President, in the cover of the full page ads in the black newspapers this week?
For those who have also been following the Inglewood oil field controversy, beware.
You see, Plains, Exploration & Production, the PXP oil company, is on their client list of Dakota Communications: http://www.dakotacommunications.org/clients.html
It explains all the PXP employees flooding the community hearings, with talk about how the oil field expansion would be great for the economy!
Clint, Lark, Malcolm & Co., they're coming your way on the oil fields.
Damien Goodmon is a community activist, and he may be contacted at
dg@fixexpo.org
