Early 2000s Several DCI partners and executives had roles advocating for
George W. Bush in the
2000 United States presidential election. Many of those same individuals similarly advocated for Bush's reelection in the
2004 United States presidential election, with DCI Group providing contractual services for the
2004 Republican National Convention. when DCI Group was hired by
Myanmar's military junta, following the release of political prisoners in the state, including
Aung San Suu Kyi. DCI's work for the government included public relations efforts to improve the leadership's image in the U.S., raising the profile of more moderate officials and emphasizing its negotiations with Suu Kyi. which was named by
Time magazine as one of its best inventions of 2006. DCI Group offers a number of different communications services, including
corporate communication,
crisis management, new media development and message development. The company was also retained by the LGBT advocacy group
Human Rights Campaign to build support for repealing the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy related to gay and lesbian personnel. The alleged production of the video by DCI Group led to critical coverage of the company in the media, due in part to its work for
ExxonMobil. DCI Group did not admit or deny involvement with the video. In addition to its traditional public relations and communications work, it was asserted that the firm engaged in "
astroturfing", i.e. the creation of front groups that serve corporate interests while posing as
grassroots activists. which has continued to develop and manage such campaigns using such strategies as direct mail and social media.
Late 2000s to early 2010s In 2008 it was reported that the company had done extensive work for federal mortgage company
Freddie Mac, running a multi-state effort against Republican Senator
Chuck Hagel's bill to tightly regulate the company. Freddie Mac acknowledged the hire, and DCI stated it had complied with "all applicable federal and state laws and regulations". In May 2008, DCI Group's Doug Goodyear and Doug Davenport resigned from the
John McCain presidential campaign following media coverage that was critical of the company's past work for the Myanmar government. According to Goodyear, they resigned in order to prevent further distraction from McCain's campaign. In the late 2000s, DCI mobilized employees of the
Education Management Corporation against a proposed regulation focused on for-profit colleges. In 2011, the company produced a campaign for the Retail Industry Leaders Association, arranging for small business owners to meet with their senators and holding press events, as part of the organization's campaign supporting the
Durbin Amendment regulating bank debit card transaction fees. During that same period, when
T. Boone Pickens sought to develop support for replacing coal and oil with
natural gas as the primary fuel source in the United States, he engaged DCI Group to build support for the effort. Pickens turned to trusted counselor Jay Rosser for this effort, and Rosser "reached out to Tom Synhorst, managing partner and chairman of DCI Group". In 2013, the
Corporate Europe Observatory reported that DCI Group has also had close ties to the
European Privacy Association, an
EU lobby group.
EDRi asserts that EPA has used the services of both DCI and an Italian lobbying firm,
Competere, the staff of which "overlaps" with DCI Group.
Mid-2010s to present In 2015–16 in the negotiations regarding the
Puerto Rican government-debt crisis, DCI reportedly worked with
BlueMountain Capital, as well as the Raben Group and the
60 Plus Association in focusing opposition to Congressional approval of the bankruptcy option for the commonwealth. In 2018, DCI registered as a lobbyist on behalf of Process and Industrial Developments Ltd., an energy company that had successfully sued the Nigerian government for billions of dollars for work on a project in that country, and which sought to persuade the Nigerian government to honor the judgment awarded. In January 2020, it was reported that an environmental group had secured the services of DCI Group to help lobby against mining in northeastern Minnesota. It was reported in 2024 that DCI was being investigated by the
FBI for hacking while working on behalf of
ExxonMobil between 2015 and 2018. The DCI Group has agreed to represent the
Myanmar Ministry of Information again in lobbying for the
military junta to rebuild relations with the United States. == References ==