• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, May 13, 2010

CBS Corp. just announced its acquisition of EcoMedia, a company that "brings together public institutions and municipalities with private industry advertisers and local media to generate funding for projects to improve the environment."

And to further quote from the CBS corporate release, "Terms of the transaction are not being disclosed."

But the real question isn't how much, but why?

The answer, says CBS chief Leslie Moonves, is to leverage the green media initiative on behalf of CBS' television, online, radio, publishing and outdoor outlets.

"We want to be a catalyst for getting actual bricks-and-mortar 'greening' projects done that will improve the quality of life in the local communities we serve," reads Moonves' canned quote. "We have seen firsthand EcoMedia's work on the ground with environmental projects throughout the country and we're very pleased to now fully integrate EcoMedia into the fabric of CBS."

CBS and EcoMedia first teamed up in 2008 to launch the CBS-EcoZone Green Schools Initiative in San Francisco, Miami and the suburban Chicago area, which raised more than $650,000 worth of products and services for green projects and technologies to give a winning school in each city a "green makeover." For its work in the city of Miami, EcoMedia received the 2009 US Council of Mayors' top honor, the Excellence in Public/Private Partnerships Award.