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Coke Discloses Millions in Grants for Health Research and Programs
New submitter erinrivers11 writes: Following criticism that Coke has supported research that plays down the role of soft drinks in the spread of obesity, the company released a list showing nearly $120 million in grants to medical, research and community organizations. The Times reports: "The list, published Tuesday on the company’s website, details hundreds of Coke grants, large and small, to a variety of organizations since 2010, including physician groups, university researchers, cancer and diabetes organizations and public parks, and even a foundation for the National Institutes of Health."
This is how you manipulate people opinions by let others people tell that everything is ok or everything is an hoax.
For years the tobacco industry did something along the same lines.
It's the calories stupid.
Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
It does not matter how much they spend on neutral research for general healthcare, they spent money on 'targeted research' (I won't call it science) to the benefit of their own business interests.
Decades ago, indirectly, with the advent of subliminal advertising.
Political correctness is really just herd psychology pushed by insecure people who desperately seek social conformity.
I'm alarmed at the growing tendency for people to jump to conclusions on topics/conspiracy theories with popular support. Coke making donations to and providing grants for medical research companies, or even directly funding research into sugared beverages and obesity is not in and of itself evidence that they're trying to manipulate the research. If it is, you put Coke in an impossible damned if you do, damned if you don't position. If they do make the donations, you criticize them for trying to manipulate research results in their favor. If they don't make the donations, you criticize them for being greedy corporate bastards who won't even donate to scientific research relevant to their product.
The donations themselves are not evidence that Coke has been trying to manipulate research results. If you want to support that hypothesis, you need to come up with specific incidents where Coke made the donations conditional on withholding or changing research results unfavorable to their product.
Just because a majority of people want to believe this theory doesn't free you from the logical and ethical obligation to actually prove the claim. The person advocating the hypothesis always has the burden of proof.