Fairfield Resident 'Keeping Ads Honest' Through TruthInAdvertising.org

If you visited the Fairfield Public Library Wednesday, you may have seen Fran Silverman typing away on a laptop at one of the library's big tables.

The Fairfield resident and veteran journalist was busy working for her new position as editor for TruthinAdvertising.org, nonprofit, national website dedicated to "educating consumers about misleading or false advertising," Silverman said.

TruthInAdvertising.org -- or "TINA" -- is headed by Bonnie Patten, a former litigation attorney. The nonprofit is based in Madison, Conn.

Silverman learned of TINA through a journalist friend. TINA needed an investigative reporter and editor. Silverman has worked as a the consumer affairs reporter for The Hartford Courant, a contributing writer to The New York Times, and as the Metro Editor for the Connecticut Post.

"It seemed to be a really good opportunity to do some consumer work with a startup," Silverman said.

TINA went live a few weeks ago. Since then, the staff has launched it's first legal campaign against NourishLife, LLC and its subdivision, SpeechNutrients. TINA alleges that SpeechNutrients' supplement "speak" has been falsely promoted as a treatment for childhood speech delays and could be harmful to children.

In addition to the motto "keeping ads honest," Silverman said, the site also serves as a platform for alerting consumers of false advertising and for filing complaints against advertising and marketing agencies.

"We want to be like the 'Consumer Reports' of false advertising," Silverman said.

If a company sold a product and it didn't live up to its ad's promise, consumers can use TINA to file a complaint as they would with the Federal Trade Commission or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

But since those two federal agencies are often overwhelmed with claims, TINA's staff -- including an in-house legal director -- can offer a quicker look into complaints of deceptive advertising.

Learn more about TINA at truthinadvertising.org.