"Obama Admin Looks to Cast a Line With Anglers"

"The Obama administration is launching a significant new effort to reach out to marine recreational fishermen, an economically and politically powerful group that has previously felt shut out by the new administration.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the main federal agency overseeing ocean and fisheries policy, has rolled out a series of new initiatives in the past month aimed at raising the profile of recreational fishing within the agency and calming some of the hostile waters between fishermen and the administration. NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco created a new post for a high-level national policy adviser for recreational fishing, reorganized regional offices to put greater emphasis on sportfishing and created a new advisory panel on the issue.

And in its most visible move, the administration is hosting hundreds of fishermen this weekend in Alexandria, Va., for a national summit on recreational saltwater fishing."

In early March, the administration had worked to dash false rumors, sparked by an ESPN article and spread on the right-wing internet, that it was planning to ban recreational fishing in marine and Great Lakes waters.

Allison Winter reports for Greenwire April 16, 2010.

See Also:

"Obama Admin Jumps to Squelch Rumors of U.S. Fishing Ban" (Greenwire)

"ESPN.com Helps Launch False "Obama Wants To Ban Fishing" Rumor" (Deadspin)

"ESPN Claims Obama Is About To Ban Fishing" (Baltimore Examiner)

"Obama Fishing Ban: ESPN Reports End of Public Input Into Fishing (NowPublic)

"Obama Fishing Ban Myth: Debunking The Baseless Rumor" (Huffington Post)

ESPN Editor's Response

"Culled Out" (ESPN)