In a post yesterday we observed that formaldehyde was becoming the latest target of the alliance of trial lawyers, “consumer activists” and members of Congress out to demonize a widely used chemical for pecuniary and political purposes. This week a Senate Commerce subcommittee held a hearing on formaldehyde in textiles and consumer products, coinciding with a recent scare — and lawsuits, of course — over supposedly contaminated Victoria’s Secret bras.
The lingerie connection should have reminded us: The other essential player in this “industry is poisoning you” combine is the media. Philosophically receptive or just plain slothful reporters repeat claims about supposedly dangerous products without bothering to check their accuracy. Poisonous bras, dangerous Katrina travel trailers: Stories too good to check, and besides, here’s a photo of a lingerie model.
The Formaldehyde Council — which we just learned about today — has been battling back against this media mudslide, today issuing an open letter correcting the many, many factual errors being spread.
Over the last year there has been a trend of erroneous and slanted stories about the use of formaldehyde in consumer and industrial applications. The falsehoods are often pushed by activist groups with a hidden financial or ideological agenda. The Formaldehyde Council, Inc. [http://formaldehyde.org], a non-profit association that represents the leading producers and users of formaldehyde in the United States — companies that are responsible for 3.6 million jobs in the U.S. and contribute $127 billion to our national economy annually — is urging reporters to apply strict standards of accuracy, objectivity and sourcing on these issues.
The open letter cites many examples of the irresponsible reporting, providing fact sheets or blog links (Formaldehyde Facts) for each incident. Not surprisingly, Good Morning America leads the bunch. Morning shows are notorious for consumer scares and shoddy reporting:
