Nuclear Matters Failing to Disclose Exelon as Primary Funder; C2ES Misleads by Not Mentioning Heavy Utility Industry Funding in 4/28 Nat’l Press Club Briefing Announcement
WASHINGTON, April 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Two organizations that inexplicably are getting a pass from most news media outlets in the United States – Nuclear Matters and the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) – are, in fact, de facto nuclear industry front groups that have failed entirely to be transparent about their financing, according to the independent watchdog group the Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS).
NIRS, which relies on donations for its operations and has a total budget smaller than the salary paid to the CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute, is objecting to the fact that in a recent barrage of news releases, op-eds, full-page New York Times ads, and its Web site, the group “Nuclear Matters” nowhere reveals that its primary or currently sole source of funding is Exelon, which maintains the largest U.S. nuclear fleet: 23 reactors at locations in Illinois, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.
Nuclear Matters is represented by Sloane & Company PR, the same firm that works for Exelon itself. Sloane PR has indicated that Exelon is not just “among the funders” of Nuclear Matters. It is currently the primary funder of the front group and funds from other interests are now being sought, according to Sloane. Nowhere is this information being disclosed by Exelon or Nuclear Matters to the public … and there is little evidence that is being demanded and then reported on by the news media. Additionally, no information has been provided to date about the fees and/or other considerations being paid by Exelon’s front group to a growing list of former public officials, including Carol M. Browner, Bill Daley, Spencer Abraham, Evan Bayh, and Judd Gregg.
Continue reading at Nuclear Industry Front Groups – Nuclear Matters And Center For Climate And Energy Solutions – Urged To Come Clean On Funding
Related article: Nuclear Industry Gains Carbon-Focused Allies in Push to Save Reactors via The New York Times
