By Bryan Corliss
Herald Writer
Microsoft itself drafted some of the thousands of letters that individuals filed as public comment on the government’s antitrust case.
It’s a tactic common in the political arena, but fairly new in the business world, said John Dienhart, who holds the Boeing Frank Schrontz chair of business ethics at Seattle University.
"I’ve never heard of it before," he said. "It seems to me a little tacky, but not unethical."
The Herald obtained a copy of one such letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, which looks as if it was drafted by an individual.
"If further litigation is pursued, more of my money as a taxpayer will be spent," the letter states. "Stop spending the taxpayer’s money as well as Microsoft’s money and resolve the settlement."
The letter was written by Microsoft’s Freedom to Innovate Network, following a telephone interview with a Camano Island woman who owns shares of Microsoft stock. It was then e-mailed to the woman with instructions to print it, sign it and mail it off to the Justice Department.
In addition to e-mailing letters, the company also faxed drafts to some supporters, sending them with instructions to copy them onto their own stationery before mailing.
The network, which lobbies on the company’s behalf, contacted people who in the past have supported its position in the antitrust case, said company spokesman Jim Desler.
In this case, the staff contacted those people, spoke with them about the issues and then drafted individual letters for them that reflected their feelings about the proposed settlement.
"We simply are directing them in how to express their opinions," Desler said. "They could obviously take it and do whatever they wanted to."
Desler said Microsoft’s opponents used similar tactics in an attempt to block the settlement.
The comment period ended Monday.
Public interest groups have been ghost-writing letters for supporters for several years in politics, Dienhart said. Groups would urge their members to write to Congress, but learned that people were more willing to send a letter if someone else wrote it for them.
"It got to cut-and-paste," he said.
In the political arena, personal letters are considered much more influential than petitions or form letters because people are less likely to go to the trouble of writing their own letter.
Dienhart said the one ethical concern he has is that the letter does not say it’s coming from a Microsoft shareholder.
Otherwise, he said, "they’ve got a mailing list and they can certainly use it."
Microsoft may be blazing a trail through the campaign, he said. "I’d suspect other companies would pick this up, if the issue’s big enough."
You can call Herald Writer Bryan Corliss at 425-339-3454 or send e-mail to
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