Influence Alley

In a concerted effort to counter negative coverage from the presidential campaign trail, the Private Equity Growth Capital Council launched a multi-million education and public affairs campaign Thursday called  "Private Equity at Work." 

The campaign's website, PrivateEquityatWork.com, includes industry fact sheets, a blog, an industry primer and case studies that will be marketed through an online advertising campaign aimed at policymakers and the media. The campaign is the first major effort under Steve Judge, who was named PEGCC president earlier this week. 

"There is a real lack of understanding about private equity - what it does, how it works and who benefits from it," Judge said in a statement. "We wanted to set the record straight by providing credible and up-to-date information about the industry and our proven record of strengthening companies, creating jobs and delivering impressive returns to pensions and other investors that bolster the financial security of millions of average Americans."

Buzz about the new campaign hit K Street earlier this week and comes in the wake of Republican and Democratic attacks on Mitt Romney's time as the head of the private equity firm Bain Capital. As part of the campaign, the organization will brief national political reporters covering private equity for first time through the campaign.

The trade group has been aggressively pushing back on negative story lines. In the last three weeks, PEGCC has played some part in over 100 news stories. With Romney in the race, the industry group has spent months preparing for the possibility of attacks on the industry from both Republicans and Democrats on the campaign trail.