Current Events > Finally, evidence of paid actors for political purposes

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https://thelensnola.org/2018/05/04/actors-were-paid-to-support-entergys-power-plant-at-new-orleans-city-council-meetings/

Last October, about 50 people in bright orange shirts filed into City Hall for a public hearing on Entergys request to build a $210 million power plant in eastern New Orleans. Their shirts read, Clean Energy. Good Jobs. Reliable Power.

The purpose of the hearing was to gauge community support for the power plant. But for some of those in the crowd, it was just another acting gig.

At least four of the people in orange shirts were professional actors. One actor said he recognized 10 to 15 others who work in the local film industry.

They were paid $60 each time they wore the orange shirts to meetings in October and February. Some got $200 for a speaking role, which required them to deliver a prewritten speech, according to interviews with the actors and screenshots of Facebook messages provided to The Lens.
They paid us to sit through the meeting and clap every time someone said something against wind and solar power, said Keith Keough, who heard about the opportunity through a friend.

He said he thought he was going to shoot a commercial. Im not political, he said. I needed the money for a hotel room at that point.

They were asked to sign non-disclosure agreements and were instructed not to speak to the media or tell anyone they were being paid.

But three of them agreed to talk about their experience and provided evidence that they were paid to endorse the power plant. Two spoke on the condition that they not be identified, saying they didnt want to jeopardize other work or get in trouble for violating the non-disclosure agreement.

Another attendee, an actor and musician who played a small role on HBOs Treme, told WWL-TV he was paid to wear one of the orange shirts at a meeting of the councils utility committee.

Paying people to create the illusion of grassroots support is known as astroturfing. Although its misleading, it appears to be legal. The Lens couldnt find any prohibition against such activities, and Louisianas lobbying laws only cover money spent directly on public officials.

But Councilwoman Stacy Head called what happened in those meetings disturbing. Councilwoman Susan Guidry, the only member of the Utility Committee to vote against the plant, called it morally reprehensible, saying, I think it had a phenomenal impact on public opinion.

The two men who recruited and organized the actors, Garrett Wilkerson and Daniel Taylor, appear to be from out of town. In our story about the October hearing, Wilkerson offered an apocalyptic prediction about what would happen to New Orleans if the power plant werent built.

It remains unclear who was behind the effort, but Guidry has a guess. How can you not link Entergy to this? she asked. Who else would have paid all these people to come there and say they want a gas-fired power plant?

Entergy New Orleans did not respond to repeated requests for comment. The company told WWL-TV, Entergy New Orleans did not pay anyone to attend.

In a Facebook message, Wilkerson indicated he was working with Crowds on Demand, a Los Angeles-based company that does exactly what its name suggests. If you need speakers to present at a council meeting, we can provide talented and well-spoken individuals to advocate for the cause, the company says on its website.

The company didnt respond to requests for comment.

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LMAO. So glad I got out of that industry
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No wonder these industires are struggling. This is what they spend all their money on, now.
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Sad!
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Wow
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So crisis actors? You know what that means...
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Seorge Goros
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only reason shit like this works is people are too stupid to think for themselves

hockeybub89 posted...

Seorge Goros

Yes, the nemesis of George Soros who goes around paying actors to support nuclear, oil, gas and coal power plants.
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C_Pain posted...

So crisis actors? You know what that means...

These weren't crisis actors and this has been happening in town hall meetings for decades.
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Burn that Clean gas
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