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NIAP’S TOP MEDIA PLACEMENTS FOR THIS YEAR

15 BEST OF 2011

NIAP public relations programs have provided exceptional and essential support to the lobbying efforts taking place in Washington, DC. The public relations operation was extremely aggressive and effective in delivering NIAP messaging in 2011.

Coupled with the extraordinary lobbying efforts, the PR program has put NIAP in a position where it carries impressive influence with the DC and NY media and thus provides a strong support platform for sympathetic and influential legislators. NIAP, its president and its membership are now sought after by all levels of media for commentary on Madoff liquidation issues, bringing NIAP a level of credibility both in the media and on Capitol Hill.

Below are examples of some media placements and influenced stories that we were able to land in the past eight months or so. These are representative stories, meaning that in many of the cases each story may have been just one of several media hits that resulted from an aggressive program of media outreach on behalf of NIAP. Explanations for each one are below.

Washington Post, 11/16/11
Madoff Victims Enraged at SEC’s Decision to Keep Employees Who Failed to Stop Madoff
This story served as a crucial mechanism to communicate that the Securities and Exchange Commission still has plenty to answer for relating to the Madoff disaster, even three years later. Several other stories appeared elsewhere on the same topic. NIAP PR heavily influenced this story and provided several victims to the reporter for reaction.

Wall Street Journal, 10/2/11
GOP Lawmaker Urges SEC to Wait on Madoff-Claims Ruling
This story also appeared in numerous other places, including Bloomberg and the New York Daily News. NIAP PR made an aggressive push to publicize that Rep. Garrett was urging the SEC to wait for the GAO report prior to reviewing its decision on net equity. The benefit seen here to NIAP would be that the GAO report could potentially bring new facts to light that would be important in the SEC’s review of the net equity decision. This extremely important point would not have gotten any exposure without NIAP’s public relations efforts.

BloombergBusinessweek, 7/27/11
Madoff Trustee’s Actions to Be Probed by GAO, Rep. Garrett Says
The announcement of the GAO investigation into Picard was an extraordinary victory for NIAP, and NIAP was able to effectively deliver the message and its importance to numerous media outlets. NIAP tipped off several outlets to the news, including the New York Daily News, which was credited by the New York Times for breaking the story. Every other major news outlet covered the story, many of them quoting Ron Stein, NIAP’s president. The story may have gotten some minor play without NIAP, but with effective messaging, it was given the importance it was due by almost every major media outlet.

Also, see Fox Business News: GAO to Conduct Review of Madoff Trustee

And, New York Daily News: Feds to Investigate Clawback Suit to See if Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims are Hurt

Fox Business News, 6/24/11
Madoff Trustee Picard No Hero to Many Victims
FoxBusiness presented the NIAP side of the story. The messaging was on target, and it represented a milestone in reaching the media and having influential, key publications recognize that the Trustee is making harmful decisions that can have widespread ramifications.

BloombergBusinessweek, 6/1/2011
Wall Street Insurance Fund ‘Choking’ Victims
NIAP prepared and delivered polished, comprehensive remarks at the SIPC Modernization Task Force Public Forum in New York. Ron Stein then met afterward with several reporters and had productive conversations, resulting in good press coverage that undermined the Trustee’s theories.

Also, see New York Daily News: Investors victimized by Bernie Madoff scheme slam Trustee for redefining net equity

Wall Street Journal, 5/17/11
The Aggrandizing Madoff Trustee
This letter from Ron Stein was printed in the Wall Street Journal in response to an editorial in the paper strongly criticizing the Trustee for his tactics in the Wilpon/Katz clawback case. NIAP’s stance was in line with the WSJ’s, and the letter had the effect of pointing out how the Trustee’s methods were not just disingenuous and unfair toward high-profile figures like Wilpon and Katz, but also to smaller investors.

CNNMoney, 2/16/11
Lawyers make millions off Madoff mess
This was one of the first stories to bring forth serious questions about the compensation the Trustee and his legal team received for their work on the Madoff case. Numerous stories followed, and had the combined effect of tarnishing the Trustee’s image somewhat. Through much of the first year of the proceedings, Picard enjoyed an image that portrayed him as a crusader for Madoff victims, which many victims knew simply was not the case. Stories like this began to suggest that he is much more a mercenary than a crusader.

BloombergBusinessweek, 10/13/11
Madoff Trustee Says Defendants’ Judge-Shopping Perverts Law
This story resulted from a legal filing by the Trustee that essentially said Madoff victims are defending themselves too vigorously. NIAP saw this as an opportunity to suggest that it was the Trustee who is perverting the law by suing innocent investors.

Various Media Outlets (Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Etc.), 8/17/11
Second Circuit Net Equity Ruling

The statement NIAP made in response to the Second Circuit’s ruling upholding the Trustee’s net equity method was picked up by just about every major news outlet in the country, including The New York Times, Wall Street Street Journal, USA Today, CNBC, Fox Business, CNN and many others.

The full text of the statement is below:

“NIAP strongly disagrees with the appeals court’s ruling, which is another blow to small investors who merely relied on the information their broker gave them. The court’s regrettable decision underscores the need for Congress to reinforce securities laws that were intended to protect the small investors harmed by this decision and the actions of the SIPC Trustee.

“We are encouraged by the bi-partisan efforts in Washington, led by Rep. Scott Garrett, to pass legislation clarifying original Congressional intent. This action is necessary to prevent victims of securities fraud from further victimization by the institutions created to protect them.”

New York Times, 12/10/11
The Lasting Shadow of Bernie Madoff
This story was a front page Business Section story recapping how the entire Madoff affair had progressed (or not progressed) over the course of 2011. NIAP was solicited for its perspective and the result was a strong plug for the Garrett legislation as well as the Government Accountability Office investigation into the activities of the Madoff Trustee.

New York Daily News, 7/29/11
Madoff Trustee Has Legal Theory that Banks Violated Their Duty Shot Down
This story, by Michael O’Keeffe of the New York Daily News, reported on the Hon. Jed Rakoff’s ruling that HSBC will not be susceptible to common law claims by the Trustee. NIAP was approached by numerous media outlets for comment on this ruling, which proved to be a complex matter for NIAP. NIAP’s statement reflected that the judge correctly shot down the overreaching Trustee’s legal theories, but that the banks should still be held accountable for their role in willfully ignoring Madoff’s illicit activities.

Wall Street Journal, 6/15/11
SEC Proposes Post-Madoff Rules for Brokerages
In this story, NIAP commented on the SEC’s proposed rules to oversee and audit brokerages in an effort to crack down on the ability for criminals like Madoff to get away with their crimes. Stories like this and NIAP commentary like this is important, because it shows that NIAP’s goals can be appealing on a wider, larger scale. That NIAP is not just a Madoff victims advocacy group, but a group that can advocate for all investors.

BloombergBusinessweek, 1/11/11
Little Relief for Madoff Victims
This story was a lengthy profile of Madoff victims, many from the net winner perspective. It’s a sympathetic look at what some of the victims were going through and why the Trustee’s methods are unfairly persecuting them.

FOR A MORE THE COMPREHENSIVE LISTING OF MEDIA PLACEMENTS, CLICK HERE.

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