Hotel Lobby Archives - Checks and Balances Project

FIU Is First University Dropped by Hotel Lobby in Pay-to-Play Academics Scheme

2017-07-24

Grant withdrawal from Florida International University raises questions, shifts pressure to Penn State and University of North Carolina.

C&BP Calls Upon Florida International University and American Hotel & Lodging Assn. to Release Grant Application Records for $68K Study

2017-07-20

Checks and Balances Project (C&BP) today called upon Florida International University (FIU) to immediately release both the initial and final grant applications to help to erase any question of the integrity of FIU research funded by the hotel lobby. The request includes all communications and documents relating to a grant proposal that resulted in a… Read more »

Hotel Lobby Expands Pay-to-Play Research Campaign to Florida International University

2017-07-11

Purpose is to buttress testimonial campaign to undermine home-sharing in South Florida Last October, Checks and Balances began investigating the university-corporate partnership between Penn State University and the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA), the primary lobbying arm of the hotel lobby. In April, we expanded our inquiry to three additional universities, including Florida International… Read more »

Penn State Stonewalling on Pay-to-Play Academics Hits 250-Day Mark

2017-06-28

For more than 250 days (roughly eight months), Penn State has been unable or unwilling to answer basic questions on how Professor John O’Neill’s pay-to-play research by meets University ethics guidelines.

New Documents Raise Question of What Role Hotel Lobby’s Chair Played in Penn State Pay-to-Play Scheme

2017-06-23

Recently uncovered documents from the hotel lobby show that Penn State Professor John W. O’Neill was hired for pay-to-play academic research. According to the briefing book American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) provided in 2014 to a meeting of its board of directors, the Professor was engaged to come up with a study with a… Read more »

New Tip Raises Questions About Penn State V.P. Neil Sharkey

2017-05-25

A Cover-Up of Play-to-Play Academic Research? We received an anonymous tip from a concerned member of Penn State community that raises a new question about how the relationship between Vice President Neil Sharkey, College of Health and Human Services Dean Ann C. “Nan” Crouter and School of Hospitality Management (SHM) Professor John W. O’Neill may… Read more »

Will Penn State Investigate Professor John O’Neill for Pay-to-Play Research?

2017-05-15

Since October 2016, we have been reporting on how Penn State School of Hospitality Management (SHM) Professor John O’Neill is using his position at the University not only to bolster his consulting practice, but also to increase the credibility of the hotel lobby pay-to-play research he conducts on behalf of his client, the American Hotel… Read more »

Metropolitan Transit Authority Records Show Improper Use of Counter-Terrorism Trademark by Anti-Home Sharing Group

2017-05-4

ShareBetter failed to obtain permission to use “See Something, Say Something” Anyone who has ridden a bus, subway or railroad in the U.S. has probably seen a sign warning, “If You See Something, Say Something.” Trademarked by the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and licensed to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the… Read more »

C&BP Expands Probe of Hotel Lobby Influence To Univ. North Carolina, Florida International University and Rutgers

2017-04-20

New York Times Story Reveals Efforts by AHLA to Build Upon Pay-to-Play Research at Penn State Since October 2016, we’ve been investigating the relationship between Pennsylvania State University Professor John W. O’Neill and the hotel industry’s lobbying arm, the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA). Now, new reporting shows that AHLA has expanded its efforts… Read more »

Penn State Professor O’Neill Hired by Hotel Lobby for Pay-to-Play Research

2017-04-18

New documents uncovered by Checks and Balances Project show that Penn State Professor John W. O’Neill has peddled hotel-industry talking points as scholarship while failing to disclose his longstanding, commercial relationships.