CorpWatch Exclusives
 | Agribusiness Buys California Votes by Pratap Chatterjee, CorpWatch Blog November 6th, 2012 Big corporations bankrolled candidates for the 2012 elections in both the Democratic and Republican parties and bought their votes lock, stock and barrel, contributing over $2 billion out of the $6 billion spent this year. The biggest impact was on a California battle to require labeling of genetically altered products. |
 | Forgiving Siemens: Unraveling a Tangled Tale of German Corruption in Greece by Lena Mavraka and Vasilis Papatheodorou, Special to CorpWatch June 11th, 2012 To understand the pervasive corruption in Greek politics, it is necessary to examine the company that has probably paid the biggest bribes to both major parties: Siemens from Munich, Germany, a company with contracts in practically every ministry from culture to telecommunications. |
 | Citizens United v. America's Citizens by Charlie Cray, Special to CorpWatch October 22nd, 2010 The midterm elections are days away, but the winners are virtually certain: the corporations and conservative operatives like Karl Rove who have taken advantage of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling to establish a well-heeled “shadow party” of networked trade associations and G.O.P. front groups. |
 | U.S. Congressional Wartime Commission Targets Armed Contractors by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch June 23rd, 2010 This week, almost a decade after the U.S. "War on Terror" began, the Commission on Wartime Contracting held two days of hearings into the role of private contractors in conducting and supporting war. The Congressional witness table included Aegis, DynCorp and Triple Canopy. Curiously, Blackwater was not called; and the CEO of Torres Advanced Enterprise Solutions failed to appear. |
 | The True Cost of Chevron: An Alternative Annual Report by Antonia Juhasz, True Cost of Chevron May 25th, 2010 Chevron's 2009 Annual Report celebrates 130 years of Chevron operations. We, the communities and our allies who bear the consequences of Chevron's offshore drilling rigs, oil and natural gas production, coal fields, refineries, depots, pipelines, exploration, chemical plants, political control, consumer abuse, false promises, and much more, have a very different account to offer. |
 | Afghanistan, Inc.: A CorpWatch Investigative Report (2006) by Fariba Nawa, Special to CorpWatch April 30th, 2010 The recent boom in humanitarian aid has an underbelly largely invisible to charity sector outsiders. “Easy money: the great aid scam," packs a biting critique (Linda Polman, The Sunday Times Online, April 25). In 2006, CorpWatch’s "Afghanistan, Inc.", cited by Polman, drilled down on reconstruction dollars, in what’s become known as “Afghaniscam.” We bring our report to you again. |
 | Afghanistan Spy Contract Goes Sour for Pentagon by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch March 16th, 2010 Mike Furlong, a top Pentagon official, is alleged to have hired a company called International Media Ventures to supply information for drone strikes and assassinations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, according to a complaint filed by the CIA and revealed by the New York Times on March 15. |
 | Agility Attempts to Vault Fraud Charges by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch February 1st, 2010 Agility, a Kuwait-based multi-billion dollar logistics company spawned by the U.S. invasion of Iraq, is facing criminal charges for over-billing the U.S. taxpayer on more than $8.5 billion worth of food supply contracts in the Iraq war zone. If the lawsuit is successful, the company could owe the U.S. government as much as $1 billion. |
 | Shed a Tear for Our Democracy by Robert Weissman, Public Cititzen January 22nd, 2010 Patronage from Exxon, Goldman Sachs, Pfizer and the rest of the Fortune 500 is already corroding the U.S. policy making process. In Citizens United v. FEC, the U.S. Supreme Court has now ruled that these corporate giants have a First Amendment right to spend unlimited amounts of money to influence election outcomes. |
 | Bhopal: Generations of Poison by Nityanand Jayaraman, Special to CorpWatch December 2nd, 2009 On the night of December 2-3, 1984, the Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal, India leaked poisonous methyl iso cyanate into its densely populated neighborhood, killing 8,000 people in the immediate aftermath. 25 years later, Dow Chemical (which purchased Union Carbide in 2001) still refuses to clean up the site. But a new generation of Bhopal survivors is taking on the fight. |
 | Black & Veatch's Tarakhil Power Plant: White Elephant in Kabul by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch November 19th, 2009 In a secluded valley a few miles from Kabul's international airport, $285 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars have flowed into a Black & Veatch-built power plant outside Tarakhil village. But, far from the public relations coup the project was intended to supply, the plant has run into problems with planning, cost over-runs and alleged corruption. |
 | Spies for Hire: New Online Database of U.S. Intelligence Contractors by Tim Shorrock, Special to CorpWatch November 16th, 2009 CorpWatch joins with Tim Shorrock today, the first journalist to blow the whistle on the privatization of U.S. intelligence, in releasing Spies for Hire.org, a groundbreaking database focusing on the dozens of corporations that provide classified intelligence services to the United States government. |
 | Obama's Tax Haven Reform: Chump Change by Charlie Cray, Special to CorpWatch June 15th, 2009 In early May, the Obama administration announced plans to eliminate the advantages that multinationals have over domestic corporations as to the tax treatment of reinvested profits. K Street corporate lobbyists haven’t squealed so loudly since they lost their three martini lunches. The uproar draws attention away from the fact that U.S. multinationals enjoy an effective tax rate of just 2.4 percent on billions of dollars in foreign active earnings. |
 | CorpWatch announces release of the CrocTail application and open CorpWatch API June 8th, 2009 CorpWatch, with support from the Sunlight Foundation, announces release of the CrocTail application and open CorpWatch API. CrocTail provides an interface for browsing information about U.S. publicly traded corporations and their many foreign and domestic subsidiaries. CrocTail also serves as a demonstration of the features and data available through the CorpWatch API. |
 | Is Halliburton Forgiven and Forgotten? Or How to Stay Out of Sight While Profiting From the War in Iraq by Pratap Chatterjee, TomDispatch.com June 3rd, 2009 At Halliburton's recent annual shareholders meeting in Houston, all was remarkably staid as the company celebrated its $4 billion in 2008 operating profits, a striking 22% return at a time when many companies are announcing record losses. Just three months ago, however, Halliburton didn't hesitate to pay $382 million in fines to the U.S. Department of Justice as part of the settlement of a controversial KBR gas project in Nigeria in which the company admitted to paying a $180 million bribe to government officials. |
 | The True Cost of Chevron: An Alternative Annual Report by Antonia Juhasz, http://www.TrueCostofChevron.com/ May 26th, 2009 Chevron's 2008 annual report is a glossy celebration of the company's most profitable year in its history. What Chevron's annual report does not tell its shareholders is the true cost paid for those financial returns, or the global movement gaining voice and strength against the company's abuses. This jointly-produced report documents negative impacts of Chevron's operations around the globe, in stark contrast to the message sent by the company's ubiquitous "Human Energy" advertising campaign. |
 | Regulating Ramatex: Authorities Shut Out as Malaysian Investor Threatens Namibian Environment by Moses Magadza, Special to CorpWatch April 5th, 2009 For nearly six years Ramatex Textile and Garment Factory barred government regulators from entering industrial premises leased from the City of Windhoek. Ramatex came to Namibia in 2001, lured by the newly implemented African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Evidence of environmental violations finally emerged after the company absconded. |
 | Policing Afghanistan: Obama's New Strategy by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch March 23rd, 2009 A new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan will be unveiled by President Barack Obama this week. It plans to ramp up the training of the Afghan army and police at a cost of some $2 billion a year. Private contractor DynCorp is already lining up to bid for some of the lucrative contracts. This article provides an overview of key reports assessing the training of the Afghan police, and DynCorp's role, to date. |
 | GEO Group, Inc.: Despite a Crashing Economy, Private Prison Firm Turns a Handsome Profit by Erin Rosa, Special to CorpWatch March 1st, 2009 While the nation’s economy flounders, business is booming for The GEO Group Inc., a private prison firm paid millions by the U.S. government. Behind the financial success and expansion of the for-profit security company, there are increasing charges of negligence, civil rights violations, abuse and even death. |
 | Book Release: "Halliburton's Army: How A Well-Connected Texas Oil Company Revolutionized The Way America Makes War"
by Pratap Chatterjee, Nation Books February 3rd, 2009 In "HALLIBURTON’S ARMY: How a Well-Connected Texas Oil Company Revolutionized the Way America Makes War" (Nation Books; February 9, 2009; $26.95), muckraking journalist Pratap Chatterjee conducts a highly detailed investigation into Halliburton and its former subsidiary KBR’s activities in Kuwait and Iraq, uncovering much new information about its questionable practices and extraordinary profits. |
 | A Glittering Demon: Mining, Poverty and Politics in the Democratic Republic of Congo by Michael Deibert, Special to CorpWatch June 26th, 2008 In the DRC, a nation rich in natural resources yet confounded by civil war and endemic poverty, artisanal mining communities are struggling for their livelihoods as foreign multinationals like AngloGold Ashanti rush to cash in. |
 | Carlyle Group May Buy Major CIA Contractor: Booz Allen Hamilton by Tim Shorrock , Special to CorpWatch March 8th, 2008 The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity funds, may soon buy out the $2 billion dollar intelligence division of Booz Allen Hamilton, one of the biggest advisors to the U.S. spy community. |
 | Burying Indonesia’s Millions: The Legacy of Suharto
by Andreas Harsono, Special to CorpWatch February 15th, 2008 Over the last 50 years, a network of cronies helped former Indonesian president Suharto build a business empire and amass a multi-billion dollar fortune. Today his successors face an uphill battle to recover the money even after his death. |
 | An Uncomfortable Spotlight in Davos by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch January 31st, 2008 The CEOs of three-quarters of the world's 100 largest companies have just completed an uncomfortable weekend at the tiny Swiss ski resort of Davos, while their companies' share prices nosedived on global stock markets, amid concern that the U.S. economy is staggering towards recession. |
 | Sunshine Laws to Track European Lobbyists by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch October 11th, 2007 Some 15,000 lobbyists work in Brussels where they meet secretly with European Union officials to try and influence the rules that govern the 27 countries that together form the world’s most powerful economic bloc. New guidelines will attempt to make this lobbying more public and reveal conflicts of interest. |
 | Mud and the Minister: A Tale of Woe in Java by Anton Foek, Special to CorpWatch July 20th, 2007 Over a year after a torrent of liquid mud at an Indonesian oil exploration site inundated four villages, killing almost 100 people, the local community is still awaiting clean-up and proper compensation. This is despite the fact that the drilling company is owned by the family of a senior Indonesian minister. |
 | Barrick's Dirty Secrets: Communities Respond to Gold Mining's Impacts Worldwide May 1st, 2007 A new CorpWatch report details the operations of Barrick Gold in nine different countries, focusing on the efforts on the part of the communities to seek justice from this powerful multinational. Download Spanish version of report |
 | Merck's Murky Dealings: HPV Vaccine Lobby Backfires by Terry J. Allen, Special to CorpWatch March 7th, 2007 Merck's lobbying campaign for mandatory vaccination of school girls provided funding for a prominent women's non-profit. The ensuing uproar has created a backlash against the pharmaceutical giant. |
 | An Insider in Brussels: Lobbyists Reshape the European Union by Elke Cronenberg, Special to CorpWatch September 18th, 2006 In order to influence the new laws that encompass the 25 countries of the European Union, now the world's largest single economy, some 15,000 lobbyists have flocked to Brussels, its political heart. The public relations firm Burson-Mastellar is one of the most active among them. |
 | A Proxy Battle: Shareholders vs. CEOs by Kevin Kelleher, Special to CorpWatch June 13th, 2006 Earnest shareholder resolutions presented at company annual general meetings on everything from human rights to executive compensation are routinely shot down in flames. But shareholder resolutions may have an effect, even in defeat. |
 | Green Fuel's Dirty Secret by Sasha Lilley, Special to CorpWatch June 1st, 2006 Ethanol made from corn has been touted as the "green fuel" of the future. Archer Daniels Midland, the largest U.S. producer of ethanol, stands to make a fortune from environmentally conscious car drivers. But is ethanol really as environmentally clean as it is hyped to be? Listen to an interview with Sasha Lilley on CorpWatch Radio. |
 | Australia Reaps Iraqi Harvest by Marc Moncrief, Special to CorpWatch April 4th, 2006 United Nations sanctions against Saddam Hussein may have failed to end his regime but they succeeded in enriching both the Iraqi dictator and corporations able to manipulate the scandal-ridden world body's Oil-for-Food program. Among the profiteers was the Australian Wheat Board, a former state-owned monopoly, which funneled over $200 million into Saddam's coffers even as the “Coalition of the Willing” was preparing for invasion. |
 | Cooking the Insurance Books by Lucy Komisar, Special to CorpWatch November 17th, 2004 As New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer charges American International Group (AIG) executives with collusion in an insurance brokerage kickback scandal, a paper trail stretching back a decade reveals that AIG used offshore shell companies to skirt the law. |
 | November Surprise by Stephen Miller, Special to Corpwatch September 8th, 2004 Electronic Voting Machines Add Uncertainty to Close Election Race Across the U.S., dozens of election commissions, county clerks and voting registrars are scrambling to maintain public confidence in an election system shaken by the Florida 2000 debacle and challenged by security flaws in hi-tech electronic solutions. In the swing states, where the presidential election is expected to be close, 14 of 20 states will be experimenting with untested technology. |
 | Media Money by Sakura Saunders and Ben Clarke, Special to CorpWatch August 25th, 2004 Media corporations give millions, receive billions. The cost for two weeks of ad-driven debate on Kerry's military record cost almost $1 million. Political advertising will bring over $1.5 billion to media corporations this election season. In turn they will invest millions in campaign contributions and lobbying. Meanwhile, substantive political coverage continues to decline. |
 | Financing the Election
by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch July 22nd, 2004 John Kerry will accept the Democratic nomination to run for United States President at the Fleet Center, a sports and entertainment arena named after the powerful FleetBoston Corporation, the biggest donor to Kerry's Congressional career. |
| A Cabinet That Looks Like (Corporate) America by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch Increasingly, the highest of government officials arrive directly from the executive offices of powerful corporations. Those who regulate and those supposed to be regulated have become almost indistinguishable. Here are a few egregious examples. |
 | New Halliburton Whistleblowers Say Millions Wasted in Iraq by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch June 16th, 2004 According to a new GAO report and congressional testimoney from former Halliburton employees, the company encouraged waste and supported overcharging for Iraq contract work. |
| From Embassy Hero to Racing Disgrace by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch June 9th, 2004 In order to restore the reputation of the venerable British institution, in March 2002, Phipps launched dawn raids on five National Hunt trainers--including nine-time champion Martin Pipe--to investigate whether the trainers were illegally plying the horses with the blood-boosting drug erythropoieitin. |
| Ex-SAS Men Cash in on Iraq Bonanza by Pratap Chatterjee June 9th, 2004 Many of the best-paid private security contracts in Iraq are managed by a small group of British ex-soldiers who served in the Special Air Services (SAS), an elite regiment of commandos that is considered one of the best special force units in the world. |
 | Controversial Commando Wins Iraq Contract by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch June 9th, 2004 A new Iraq contract to create the world's largest private army goes to a company run by Tim Spicer, a former officer with an elite regiment of British commandos who has a questionable track record. |
 | Banking on Empire by Mitch Jeserich, Special to CorpWatch February 4th, 2004 Iraqi ministries will now be able to borrow billions of dollars to buy much-needed equipment from overseas suppliers, but only by mortgaging the national oil revenues through a bank managed by JP Morgan Chase. |
 | Enron Style Corporate Crime and Privatization by Darren Puscas, Polaris Institute June 20th, 2003 An inside look at the U.S. Coalition of Service Industries (USCSI), the major driving force behind the scenes pushing for the privatization of services, including public services. |
 | Bechtel Wins Iraq War Contracts by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch April 24th, 2003 In this special investigative series we look at Bechtel's friends in high places, the revolving door between government and the corporate giant and some of its past boondoggles. |
 | Iraq and the Axis of Oil by Maria Elena Martinez and Joshua Karliner, CorpWatch October 23rd, 2002 In this CorpWatch Opinion, we look at the connection between the looming war in Iraq, corporate crime in America and control of the world's oil supply. |
 | Bush: Corporate Confidence Man by Charlie Cray and Lee Drutman, Special to CorpWatch July 10th, 2002 Bush's Corporate Responsibility plan is pretty anemic -- not what you'd expect from a president desperate to keep the current crisis from becoming a major political liability. |
 | George and Dick's Amazing Corporate Misadventures by Stephen Pizzo, Special to CorpWatch July 10th, 2002 Has the avalanche of corporate revelations left your head spinning? Investigative journalist Stephen Pizzo offers a cheat sheet to scandals plaguing the White House. |
 | Report Alleges US Role in Angola Arms-for-Oil Scandal by Wayne Madsen, Special to CorpWatch May 17th, 2002 Did US officials and oil companies play a role in international arms-for-oil scandal? |
 | Williams Companies: Enron II by Wayne Madsen, Special to CorpWatch February 14th, 2002 Top executives say Williams Companies faces huge losses due to deals with Enron. But a lawsuit says they were covering up the company's own Enron-like activities. |
 | Star Wars: Protecting Globalization From Above by Karl Grossman, Special to CorpWatch January 18th, 2002 Bush's revived Star Wars program got a boost after 9-11. He's asking for $8.3 billion for a missile program from Congress, and the big defense contractors are hoping to make a fortune. |
| Bush Administration Tobacco Industry Ties by Robert Weissman, Special to CorpWatch April 1st, 2001 Policy making authority in the Bush administration on tobacco issues will rest largely with the Department of Health and Human Services, the Justice Department, the U.S. Trade Representative and, above all, the White House. Many key officials in these agencies have ties to the tobacco industry or have suggested sympathy for positions favored by the industry. |
| Peddling the E-Ticket to the Development Train by Sarah Anderson, Special to CorpWatch March 8th, 2001 As both the Democratic and Republican parties jockey to win the favor of the high-tech industry, U.S. trade officials under Clinton and now under the Bush Administration have been aggressively promoting high tech's global interests by breaking down barriers to electronic commerce. |
| Halliburton's Destructive Engagement by Kenny Bruno, Special to CorpWatch October 11th, 2000 Since Dick Cheney became a candidate for Vice President, many journalists have focused on his mixed financial record as CEO of Halliburton, and his enormous retirement package. Few have investigated Dick Cheney's role in influencing foreign policy for the benefit of the company. |
| Al's Pals: A List of Gore's Top Donors by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch September 8th, 2000 Gore's top donors for the 2000 presidential campaign (donation in parenthesis). |
| Al Gore: Friend of Corporate America by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch September 8th, 2000 Al Gore has raised more money than any other Democratic presidential candidate in history. But his pandering to rich and powerful comes at a cost to the public. |
| Integrity in the Balance: Al Gore's Record On the Environment by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch August 29th, 2000 Terri Swearingen has heard enough of Al Gore's promises on the environment. ''There may be some that believe he is a premier environmentalist, but not me,'' says the forty-three year old registered nurse and mother. |
| Al Gore: The Other Oil Candidate by Bill Mesler, Special to CorpWatch August 29th, 2000 For thousands of years, the Kitanemuk Indians made their home in the Elk Hills of central California. Come February 2001, the last of the 100 burial grounds, holy places and other archaeological sites of the Kitanemuks will be obliterated by the oil drilling of Occidental Petroleum Company. |
| Beyond the DNC by Ruth Conniff, Special to CorpWatch August 18th, 2000 LOS ANGELES -- It's all over but the spinning. Outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles, the LAPD took snap shots if each other in the protest area where earlier in the week they clubbed and tear gassed demonstrators, as well as a few convention-goers and members of the media. |
| DNC: Corporate Crusaders by Ruth Conniff, Special to CorpWatch August 17th, 2000 LOS ANGELES -- On Wednesday night, at the House of Blues on Sunset strip, the Edison Electric Institute, the Nuclear Energy Institute, the American Gas Association, and the National Mining Association put on a Motown bash honoring Representative John Dingell (Democrat of Michigan) under the banner ''The Motor City Takes L.A. for a Spin.'' |
| DNC: Corporate Sponsors and Rubber Bullets by Ruth Conniff, Special to CorpWatch August 15th, 2000 LOS ANGELES -- Towering over the fenced protest area outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles is a giant mural with the faces of Cesar Chavez, Eleanor and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy. |
| It Feels Like One Big Business Party by Randy Hayes, Los Angeles Times August 11th, 2000 Monday is the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, where thousands of environmental, human rights, labor and campaign finance reform advocates will gather both in the streets and at the Shadow Convention hosted by Arianna Huffington. We of Rainforest are not gathering to show our support for the Democratic Party. |
| Cheney's Oil Investments and the Future of Mexico's Democracy by Martin Espinoza, Special to CorpWatch August 8th, 2000 MEXICO CITY -- The GOP's vice-presidential hopeful Dick Cheney once claimed that it was a damned shame the ''good lord'' didn't put the earth's most abundant oil reserves in democratic countries. |
| RNC: ''Don't Worry, Be Happy'' by Ruth Conniff, Special to CorpWatch August 1st, 2000 PHILADELPHIA -- Among the myriad corporate sponsors of the Republican Convention this year is Dale Carnegie and Associates, Inc., the self-described ''global leader in business training.'' |
| Enron in India: The Dabhol Disaster by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch July 20th, 2000 Just before dawn on June 3, 1997, police officers forcibly entered the homes of several women in Veldur, a fishing village in western India, dragging them into waiting police vans and beating them with sticks. |
| George W. Bush Gets Layed by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch July 20th, 2000 This investigative report the uncovers close ties between the GOP candidate and Enron Corportations CEO. |