..Prevention is Better than Cure......

It is better to be prepared for a crisis than later try to cure it. Crisis management is not the mastery of spin, but preventing a PR nightmare.

Bonner uses the term “SOCKO” — Strategic Overriding Communications and Knowledge Objectives — to identify tangible risks and create clear messages, grouping solutions into strategies, attitudes, behaviors, goals, hopes, aspirations, capabilities, and training.

Ideally speaking there should be a crisis plan. According to Gerard Braud from Braud Communcations, a good rule is your crisis plan should be "Idiot proof." That means the plan should be so simple that anyone who can read can execute it.

But how do you find out what can hit the company?

Let’s follow 4 simple steps. One, this is when you spend time interviewing people within your organization to ask them what might go wrong and why. Your interviews should range from top executives, to managers, to line employees.

Two, creating the template that will become the heart of the plan. This is the part of the plan that coordinates notification of key leaders during a crisis, notification of the media, employees, customers, the community and other key stakeholders specific to your organization.

Three, literally write out what you anticipate you would say to your critical audiences in the event that each of these events happens.

Four, is testing the plan. If you don't test your plan, then it may likely be a crisis waiting to happen. A test lets all parties become familiar with what's in the plan and make sure it works as planned. Even the best plans have a flaw here and there that can be exposed and corrected during a drill.

What to do when crisis strikes? (whether you are prepared or not)

The first thing I would recommend is to preferably hire a PR professional skilled in handling critical situations.

Second, it is essential that an organization have an official spokesman (and back-up spokesmen) to be the voice and face of the organization in times of crisis. (This person also should be a skilled apologizer)

Third, a heartfelt public apology can go a long way to healing a bruised reputation, but a stiff, legalese-filled "statement" might just make things worse.

Fourth, in a crisis what is obvious may not be, therefore do not make predictions in a crisis.

Fifth, the first 24 hours during the crisis are important, thus it is suggested to make statements immediately.

Sixth, humanistic stories can be applied to neutralize the serious straight news. Mr. Kim used as an example the Asiana Airlines' publication of rescue stories during plane crash incident, which helped diverted negative image for the airline.

Seventh, businesspeople are advised not to use business jargons in dealing with the media as jargons can result in misinterpretation.

Eight, deliver the news with honesty and sincerity with specific emphasis on how the situation is being tackled.

Ninth, not to think about the immediate financial impact, the long term reputation is more important.

Tenth, do not think about just containing the damage – think about turning the situation on its head.

The key element in handling a crisis is to be ready. One cannot anticipate the exact shape a crisis will take anymore than a firefighter can anticipate how a fire will burn. How firefighters deal with that is to plan and practice. A company should be doing the same.

Top PR Crises of 2007

http://aboutpublicrelations.net/ucbraud1.htm

http://www.ereleases.com/prfuel/avoiding-public-relations-nightmares-through-crisis-management/

http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-public-relations-works3.htm

http://www.slideshare.net/bnixon/public-relations-during-times-of-crisis-presentation

Is a PR education required to be successful in the profession?

Is a PR education required to be successful in the profession?

Public Relations is consistently ranked among graduates' top three career choices. It doesn't stop there. Increasing numbers of people are switching jobs into PR, in the past few years there has been a rapid growth in the number of journalists taking the plunge. "This is a particularly interesting trend, because traditionally it's been a case of 'never the twain shall meet'," says Jay O' Connor, chair of the education and professional standards committee at the CIPR

This raises a question whether PR education is required to be successful in the profession. I would say YES it is.

1. In developed nations entry into the profession is highly competitive and a degree is a must. Pursuing a vocational qualification shows your dedication towards the profession. The employers may be willing to invest their time and money on you if you possess a qualification.

2. A public relations professional is trained to understand the need to ensure that a story contains messages that support business objectives. Helping to shape the external environment so that a business can thrive is clearly a concern for the PR professional, alongside the accountants and lawyers.

3. PR qualification will give you the basic skills required for progressing in the profession. The Three Employable Skills are: Writing, Critical Thinking & Knowing PR Tools and Technique.

4. PR is about managing the image and reputation of an organisation. PR profession gives you an insight into the profession which can be applied to real life situations. Whereas a non qualified person may take a long time to comprehend the basics of the profession.

5. PR qualification teaches you that working in public relations tends to appear glamorous, but there can be tedium as well. Therefore if you are interested in a PR career, it's important to look beyond the glitz and recognise the demands of the profession.

All academic writers like Grunig, Heath, Malooney, Theaker etc. have emphasised that having a degree helps make PR a profession. Studying PR gives you an opportunity to understand the issues of the profession before jumping into it.

A journalist may switch the profession and think he/she knows how to handle media relations but this is only one aspect of PR. PR goes much beyond media relations.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/make-an-impact-pr-is-a-popular-profession-for-both-graduates-and-career-changers-847695.html

http://www.pr-consultant.co.uk/public-relations-trade-profession/

http://www.marcomblog.com/2006/06/20/undergrads-need-more-than-a-fluent-uderstanding-of-theories-to-land-a-good-job-in-pr/

Global PR is Hardwork.......

After a most stimulating debate in the class I feel that global PR is sheer hard work. It's a big world after all.

According to Lou Hoffman, dealing with our big world represents one of the greatest challenges staring down the public relations profession. Public relations, public affairs, and communication professionals working for nonprofit, for profit, and governmental transnational organizations (TNOs hereafter) face an ever-increasing interdependent world.

I think with the rapid globalization of the profession, it is important that professionals are equipped to deal with the myriad of issues that arise particularly from cross-cultural communication.

Global PR is accused of money generating business well they are right but this money does not come easy. Let’s say, if an English firm is hired by a corporate in India may be Tata’s (India) ....what will the firm have to in order to get across its message correctly? I think following are few of the things that have to fit right in the matrix of communication....

1. Country Profile. The agency has to very carefully study the political & economic situation of the country. The socio cultural profile will have to be cracked. The marketing culture has to be understood. Which medium of technology (media & new media) can be used effectively in the campaign?

2. Media Profile. The media code has to be understood. Who controls the editorial content of the media? Which type of media has.... what type of outreach?

3. Cultural Profile. Communication influences and is influenced by culture. So PR professionals have to evaluate if the country a high content or low content culture? What is the distribution of power in the country? Is it ‘individualism’ of ‘collectivism’ culture?

4. What role does Activism play in the country?

These could be a few reasons that mostly all global PR firms tend to have local people manning their offices. It is noted by Modella et.al (2007) that excellent international public relations is integrated, meaning that worldwide, practitioners report to the public relations department at headquarters and work under a single umbrella. It is recognized that senior managers (probably locals) in each country are responsible for activities in that country. But if something negative happens anywhere, headquarters is ultimately responsible.

It is for this responsibility of the headquarters that the PR firm is paid so handsomely for.

http://www.hoffman.com/inthenews/articles/mc_may_00.html

http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/1/7/1/9/7/pages171973/p171973-1.php

http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/2/5/6/8/8/p256884_index.html

Sriramesh K. &, VerČiČ D. (2003)The Global Public Relations Handbook: Theory, Research, and Practice. Contributors: Editors NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Is CSR beneficial???

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a controversial subject that continues to attract a lot of attention – from those who argue that the whole issue is irrelevant to business (Freeman and Liedtka 1991), to those who see the relevance, but think it is a bad idea for business (Friedman 1962), to the vast array of writers who think that CSR is of strategic importance to business ( Asongu 2007) ,

"C-suite executives" — such as CEOs, CFOs and COOs — identified deep-seated cynicism and scepticism about whether CSR was anything more than window-dressing and public relations puffery.

The reasons given for this accusation are that, generosity with shareholder’s money is not philanthropy, it is theft. (Hopkins 2007)

It may also impose costs on companies that are partly hidden and hard to measure. Freidman is the chief exponent of the theory that companies’ responsibility is to make profits, not decide how, or how much, the environment should be protected. His oft quoted pronouncement that ‘social responsibility of business begins and ends with increasing profits’ implies that social issues should be best left for anyone but businesses. The critics say that social welfare is the duty of the government because governments are more than capable, either individually or collectively, of achieving social aims through legislation.

On the other hand, Sir Mark Moody Stuart, Chairman American PLC (2006) said that when people started to realise how revenue was mis- spent or stolen over long periods by government, they turned to the corporate and asked ‘you made money, but there is little in the country to show for it.’ According to Cohen (2003) there is an increasing interconnectedness between business, government, and the non-governmental sectors of society. The walls between the three are blurring. And so, the welfare of the communities also became the responsibility of the corporate.

The CSR movement in 60’s showed companies that their responsibilities do not lie purely in making profits, what is important is how profits are made (Hopkins 2008). Today companies are using a more strategic approach in their CSR efforts. Significant research and preparation goes into planning CSR strategies, determining where a company can make the most effective impact.

CSR has created a win –win situation between the society and the corporate sector. The companies get free publicity for their initiatives. Research proves it that companies especially engaged in environmentally friendly initiatives have reduced the cost of their operations.eg. Cisco. There is also a rise in socially responsible investment. (Kotler 2005). CSR strengthens the brand value of the company and therefore workers like to work for the company and customers tend to be loyal to the brand. (Pringle & Thomson 1999).

And finally what every public relations practitioner /department dreams of, is when the potential advertising cost of a company is reduced as a result of free publicity.

What does the reader think?

Article The Age

Blog1 Mallen Baker

Blog 2 Phillipe Legrain

A Brief History of CSR.......

To begin with the debate whether CSR is necessary or not let us first understand the history of CSR.

The origins of CSR are connected with philanthropy and the United States of America, where modern firm was born. At the end of the nineteenth century an idea appeared in the USA that businessmen should be responsible towards the society. This concept gained popularity particularly in the times of the Depression in 1930s.

However, the modern view on the CSR developed in 1950s thanks to Howard Bowen. He explained in ‘Social Responsibilities of the Businessman’ that business operations influence society and therefore they should be coherent with objectives and values of this society.

Later, in 1960s and 1970s the debate on business ethics built the base for modern tools of CSR such as social audit. 1980s brought the idea of sustainable development and 1990s on corporate citizenship. Together with theory the practice and research have progressed. Currently, Europe and particularly the UK are leading in the practice of CSR.

The Oxford Handbook for CSR

1.Social Audit

2. Article

3.Mallen Baker

Women power... we will rule!!!!!

Every book and every journal that I have read till now (in order to research women in PR industry), points to the fact that in spite of women being in majority( about 70%) in the profession it is the men who have all the top spots.

It is a sweeping generalization of course. There are a few PR agencies which are headed by women. There are other few which are owned by women but the issue here is of percentage.

I have already discussed (in my earlier blog entries) the reasons (family, children and Cinderella complex etc.) of why women cannot reach the top.

But the road ahead may not be as dark as it seems. The future holds a great potential. I am a believer of karma. Thus I think if given adequate professional education, women will be on the top in a decade or so. Why do I sort of predict a decade? It is because I feel for the concept of women bosses being accepted, will need time to seep into the minds of women and men in particular.

I base this premise, as Moore ( 1986) noted, that many of the older men who make the choices of giving a raise to women still do not feel comfortable with women. These men, however, do not consider themselves to be discriminating against women overtly; they are simply following their customary way of choosing people.

I presume men with such thoughts are on their way out of the industry ( owing to age), paving way for younger and more receptive men who know in the college their women colleagues got better grades then them!!!!!

I came across this very interesting quote: Ryan (quoted in Lukovitz, 1989) argued: "Contending that women aspire to be a technician is horrendously akin to blaming the victim. All the women I know perceive themselves as far transcending the roles they are obliged to occupy". For her, women's lower status in public relations is not of their own doing. Instead, women's subjugation is a result of the "corporate, male-dominated world that continues not to pay or promote women as it does men".

The beginning has been made with a few women on the top, now it is just a matter of time when the others will follow.

Men or women....... who is responsible?

Female bosses may be a new concept for many men. Few decades ago, women were expected to be housewives. Today women are starting their own businesses or becoming CEOs of multi-million dollar PR agencies.

Many male executives, are not used to working with powerful women, whether they are powerful in terms of their work or powerful in terms of their personality. This could be a reason that men feel threatened and thus may not allow women to rise in the ranks.

Males are not the only ones to blame for the lack of female at the top levels in PR industry. Some women are just not comfortable with power. Thus many a times it is a glass ceiling that is self-created and women would have to push themselves out of this self-imposed ceiling.

A lot of great female businesswomen are present in PR world, but I don’t know how many feel comfortable in their role as a female businesswoman. Maybe, a lot of women work at the hands and permission of the male business environment. Even though women may yield power effectively, women (it is researched by psychologists) are not comfortable with power. This creates an internal conflict which can limit their effectiveness.

And then there are some smart women like Willibanks in business, who have understood this dilemma in the society. She has a largely female staff because she wanted to be surrounded by strong women. As a strong business woman herself with great business acumen she decided to partner with a male, Bill Elam, who is the other half of her strength. According to her, some clients only want to work with male executives, and WilbanksElam is able to cater to each client’s needs.

Ref:

Blog

Book

Article1

Article2

Join Conversations in Public Relations as we meet Carolyn Tieger, 2005 Washington PR Woman of the Year and Partner and Managing Director with the public relations firm, Porter Novelli.

A little reflection on gender issues.....

The first thought that comes to the mind and all researchers have admitted is that having children is costing women thousands of pounds. Research by the London School of Economics said the "mother gap", the time taken off work to have babies, costs women between £19,000 and £285,000 over a lifetime.

However, the problems do not stop there. Mothers face more subtle difficulties in keeping up with the Mr Joneses.

Then there is a Cinderella complex.

Women are also guilty of undermining themselves. They are less confident in their abilities, less likely to demand pay rises, and less certain that they deserve the highest positions.

As if this is not enough.... women also have to cope with the "old-boy network" that is alive and well in London's gentlemen's clubs and on golf courses up and down the country.

I have a(fantasy) question ????

When will a time come when men who feel threatened by careerist female colleagues will be offered assertiveness training ?

ref:

Blog

BBC

Colette Dowling

Three reasons why women cannot run a PR agency in near future?

Google search women in PR and more than a dozen sites will open. Go to the library and all reputed authors in PR have written about women and how there is a need to boost their self confidence to move in higher positions of PR agency. So we know that there is a problem. There is no fire without a spark.

When I researched a few top agencies of London none of them had a woman leading it.

I will give you 3 reasons why women may not be able to lead a PR agency.

The first reason is that women may possess those abilities and skills which are required for leadership roles in a PR agency. You say women are persuasive, caring, and cooperative, with good communication skills. They are intuitive and spontaneous—perfect qualities to do a technicians role not a leaders role.

Research proves that leadership roles require completely different skills, that you be forceful, independent, logical, resilient and decisive. Lot of women think they have it but they don’t.

The second reason why women may not lead a PR agency and research proves it, is ‘networking.’ Networking arrangement provides invaluable information, visibility and support. Men have the time to socialize more and thus benefit from what we call’ fill in the gaps’ while let’s say drinking at a pub. I am not promoting women going to pubs but the case here is they cannot network as much as men do and I cannot stress enough why contacts are so important in running a PR agency.

The third reason why women may not run a PR agency, is due to occupational stress. Men and women managers often share common stressors, but women in managerial roles are faced with additional pressures, both from work and home/ social environment.. not experienced by male managers.

Book Ref.:

1. Grunig: Women in Public relations. How gender influences practice

2.Davidson & cooper: Shattering the Glass ceiling

3. Wirth: Breaking through the Glass Ceiling

4.Wilcox: Relations strategies and tactics

5. Cutlip: Effective public relations

Ethics and Law

The Public Relations Society of every country has put together a list of ethical guidelines they expect all public relations managers, no matter what business they are in, to follow. Most companies will make some kind of ethical guidelines and put in place the behaviour they expect their employees to follow. These guidelines are put in place to set standards of honesty and goodwill for all public relations representatives to follow.

I think as PR practitioners we must understand a few concepts of ethics. If we fail to address an issue ethically we may get into legal trouble. So let me explain some generally used words in law to define unethical practices.

Defamation is a publication of material that would lead to hatred, ridicule, contempt, or spite. There are two types of defamations: libel and slander

Libel is when you publish something against someone and the person can sue you for libel.

Slander is a spoken word or gesture defamation.

The other concepts we must understand are:

Product Liability it is a legal responsibility of organizations to compensate individuals for injury or damages caused by defects in their products or services.

Malice it is when a company knew about the issues, its harmfulness, and did nothing about it or covered it up.

Privacy Rights is an invasion, appropriation, intrusion, false light issues.

Perrier case study

One example of a business that acted ethically and was rewarded for their honesty was Perrier, who is a company that has been regarded as one of the most well-known companies for producing and selling sparkling mineral water.

When the company found out that traces of Benzene, a harmful chemical that could make any customer sick, in thirteen of their water bottles in the United States, they could have easily played it off as a mishap since it was only thirteen bottles out of the millions they sell each year.

However, Perrier acted ethically and pulled all bottles off the shelves in the United States. They came up with a successful public relations tactic of communicating the concern of Benzene in their water to the public and were completely honest with their customers.

While some of their customers could have gotten really angry for the mistake, most of them accepted Perrier’s apology based on the idea that they were honest and took a “safety-first” approach to their product.

As a result, Perrier was hardly criticized and retained most of their customer base . Because Perrier acted ethically and in the bet interest for their customers, there were no reports of Perrier’s customers getting sick due to their mistake and they are still a successful company.

If they had not acted ethically, the risk of someone getting sick would have been much higher, resulting in more damage to Perrier’s image.

Moral of the story is that ethical behaviour is the choice of an individual.

Who determines ethical behaviour?

According to Josephson Institute ethics are ‘standards of conduct that indicate how one should behave based on moral duties and virtues.’ I agree with Holt that a lot of questions are raised by PR professionals about ethics. What will be called an ethical behaviour? Who determines ethical behaviour- the company where to work, your own morals or the PR code of Ethics? What if they are conflicting?

First let me distinguish morals from ethics. Morals are personal and individual to you. They are often entrenched values and principles that are shaped by your upbringing. Ethics on the other hand is a study of morals. And it develops structured and consistent frameworks to help people make decisions based on open principles.

There are four principles of Potter(not Harry Potter!). One, get your facts and define the situation. Two, Identify your values. Three, Select your principles. Four, select your loyalties- which of the stakeholders will you favour.

I think the tide turns here. When you go through the first three principles and presume you are making a good ethical choice, you are faced with the greatest dilemma of your professional life. Whom to favour?

When you have a family to take care of, a job that you wish to hang on (whatever are the reasons) so who will you favour then? Is this the reason that the scale always tilts towards the employer’s side. Is then the decision taken or advice given ethical?

Politics is like the Film Industry

I went to watch a Hindi film Luck by Chance (I enjoyed the film) and I felt that there is a parallel between films and politicians.

All worlds a stage and we are all actors. The Image Management activity of Public Relation agencies is working overtime.

It will not be a surprise that sometime in future, like for aspiring actors there would be a screen test of politicians. For clearing this screen test all politicians will enroll themselves in Institutes of Politician training (run by PR agencies of course). And only politicians with a certificate will get an opportunity for the screen test (read elections). Thus we the public, no longer will see plain looking politicians.

They will be trained in portraying the correct shade of feelings for the screen (read masses) and once off stage they will be different. Who cares for substance when there will be style!!!

The political addresses to the masses will be called ‘frames’ and after every such delivery the director (PR people)will shout ‘cut’ and congratulate the politician to have given a great shot.

I think this would be the right time to be in the PR industry.... laughing all the way to the bank.

I am loving it!!!!!!!

Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely

It has been argued that today political parties are quickly abandoning ideologies and now are marketing themselves (with the help of PR agencies of course) according to the needs of the voters.

I think there is no problem in thinking of the voters need but I do have a problem with the word marketing. It is this word that beats the purpose and the politicians become mere vendors, selling something that they do not believe in.

Political parties across the globe have tried to reinvent themselves but the process is so shallow. Labour became New Labour, Conservative became Conservatives (great PR working there!). The reinvention lasts for the elections and post elections they are all the same.

Almost all political parties come to power with the agenda of change (no pun intended) but will later be accused of spin and manipulation as their predecessors were.

George Orwell said it very well that, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The Other side of the story.

I think the corporate sector may be a bit worried about the advent of new media.

They are worried (rightly so) about how their business practices are viewed by consumers and activists?

The first reason of this worry could be that the internet has long been a powerful medium for anti-corporate messages. Moreover, material posted on these websites often remains accessible via search engines long after it is first published. A Google search for "Nike", now considered a leader in managing labour conditions in its factories, still brings up a "Boycott Nike" website.

The second reason could be that a blogger has zero accountability, he has no advertisers, infrastructure or cost model to worry about and nobody's going to sue him.

I think new media forces the business towards a new level of transparency, since the online users are quick to uncover "flogging" (fake blogging) and to deride companies for any differences that emerge between their rhetoric and their actions.

The business organizations need PR more than ever in order to constantly gauge reactions of consumers and create a favourable image of the company in the minds of the stakeholders.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9e2800f2-6ecd-11db-b5c4-0000779e2340.html?nclick_check=1

Two Models of PR

PR 1.0 (traditional) vs. PR2.0 (modern)

I think,in traditional times media relations was considered as the main task of a PR practitioner. His/ her job was to enhance press coverage and create awareness. The perpetual thought enveloping our minds was tomorrow’s headlines. Will we make it or not? May be our task veered towards product promotion and mass targeting ( both debatable) using persuasion as a tool. And how many nights and days were (and still are) spent on press clipping analysis?

In PR 2.0 times the role has slightly shifted. We now have stakeholder communities that need to be constantly monitored. We have to worry about Google search ranking. Awareness has given way to acceptance in order to move towards sustainable success. We now are moving in the era of discussing issues rather than mere product promotion. Micro targeting is the buzz word and along with the press analysis we are doing attitudinal research. Persuasion is gradually changing to conversation.

Richard Bailey : Source

Book ref. PR 2.0 by Deirdre Breakenridge

I came across this You tube interview with Michael G. Cherenson, Executive VP Success Communications, who talks about the importance of new media for a PR practitioner.

New Media and PR

How do PR practitioners prepare themselves from this onslaught of internet? Should the practitioner start getting worried about this phenomenon and kind of look for other jobs as citizen journalists take the role of advocacy? (Sounds extreme, may be!!)

In our class we discussed the advent of new media and the role of PR. It was a relief to understand that new media/ social media(SM) may not pack us off hunting for jobs during recession!!!! And not anytime at all.

The reasons for not hitting the panic buttons are.

1. Media management serves as the mainstay of PR

2. PR has more than 100 years of history in traditional media.

3. Pitching story ideas to a journalist is a vital skill for a PR practitioner.

4. Third party endorsement differentiates PR from advertising. It helps in creating credibility.

The new media may actually be used as complimentary to the traditional media. PR practitioners can now connect directly with the consumer and create better and more effective campaigns. People/ customers discussing issues on blogs actually may give the PR practitioner an edge.

In order to achieve this edge, we no doubt, have to learn new skills to use social networking sites. What can be better for us than to read the thoughts of people and then masterfully react to them?

The underline principal is : we have to learn, accept and change.

After reading about Propaganda and war, today I would like to sum up the lecture we had on last Wednesday on War and Spin.

I decided to take the reverse route of reading first , understanding the word propaganda in terms of public relations and then see if we the ordinary civilians could decipher the word propaganda correctly in the class.

Well I can say we sure were successful. I think Iraq war farce was on everybody’s mind and we had that example at the back of our minds when we discussed propaganda. Iraq the mother of all Lies!!!! has taught us all an important lesson once again....NEVER trust a political leader. They manipulate and they spin and most of all politics has given a BAD name to PR.

As I was reading the strategy used in propaganda it appeared to me that Bush sat down with a good book on Propaganda and followed every word. (Should we stop the authors of such books to write?? So we can avoid other wars???)

Hill & Knowlton, then the world's largest PR firm, served as mastermind for the Kuwaiti campaign. Its activities alone would have constituted the largest foreign-funded campaign ever aimed at manipulating American public opinion. . Did this agency forget the Code of Ethics? So when Bush picked up a good book on Spin, Hill & Knowlton put down or may be hid the best book ‘Code and Ethics for PR professionals.’

A conservative estimate of the likely overall cost of the war and its aftermath is carefully projected in Joseph Stiglitz' and Linda Bilmes' 2008 book, The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict. Amy Goodman interviewed Stiglitz and Bilmes on February 29, 2008. You may read the transcript as well as watch and/or listen to this interview at http://www.democracynow.org/2008/2/29/exclusive

_the_three_trillion_dollar_war.

How many hospitals, schools and vocational training centres could have been made with this huge amount of money?

On second thoughts (frivolous of course) propaganda cannot be so bad because an agency calls itself Propaganda PR!!!!!!!!!!!

Books ref.

1. PR power by Barry Amanda

2. PR A Social History of Spin by Ewen Stuart

Why does propoganda work?

It seems to work for a number of reasons including

People wish to believe the best about themselves and their country
Fear - mongering, especially about the threat to cherished values such as freedom and justice.
Presenting fears and claims that appear logical and factual.
Media management and public relations is very professional.
Managing thoughts by narrowing ranges of debate, thus minimizing widely discussed thoughts that deviate from the main agenda.


I came across this very interesting video on ' How to brainwash a nation?'

Stages of Propoganda in war

Ottosen identifies several key stages of a military campaign to “soften up” public opinion through the media in preparation for an armed intervention. These are:

The Preliminary Stage—during which the country concerned comes to the news, portrayed as a cause for “mounting concern” because of poverty/dictatorship/anarchy;

The Justification Stage—during which big news is produced to lend urgency to the case for armed intervention to bring about a rapid restitution of “normality”;

The Implementation Stage—when pooling and censorship provide control of coverage;

The Aftermath—during which normality is portrayed as returning to the region, before it once again drops down the news agenda.

O’Kane notes “there is always a dead baby story” and it comes at the key point of the Justification Stage—in the form of a story whose apparent urgency brooks no delay—specifically, no time for cool deliberation or negotiating on peace proposals. Human interest stories … are ideal for engendering this atmosphere

Two Grounds of Conflict

I think,probably every conflict is fought on at least two grounds: the battlefield and the minds of the people via propaganda. The “good guys” and the “bad guys” can often both be guilty of misleading their people with distortions, exaggerations, subjectivity, inaccuracy and even fabrications, in order to receive support and a sense of legitimacy.

It is really fascinating to know how public discourse is being shaped, particularly concerning issues of public policy and how facts, lies, spin, and propaganda is used to further ideologically-driven agendas, all the while couching it is in the language of reason and argumentation.

Is this ethical PR? I wonder.....

Common Propoganda Tactics : Useful in all wars

The first casualty when war comes is Truth

— U.S. Senator Hiram Johnson, 1917

Common tactics in propaganda often used by either side include:

• Using selective stories that come over as wide-covering and objective.
• Partial facts, or historical context
• Reinforcing reasons and motivations to act due to threats on the security of the individual.
• Narrow sources of “experts” to provide insights in to the situation. (For example, the mainstream media typically interview retired military personnel for many conflict-related issues, or treat official government sources as fact, rather than just one perspective that needs to be verified and researched).
• Demonizing the “enemy” who does not fit the picture of what is “right”.
• Using a narrow range of discourse, whereby judgments are often made while the boundary of discourse itself, or the framework within which the opinions are formed, are often not discussed. The narrow focus then helps to serve the interests of the propagandists.

Build up of Iraq War - A propoganda caught red handed

The propaganda by Bush worked like charm on the people of America. The time was post 9/11 and America was vulnerable after the fall of the twin towers. They wanted the villain and Bush named him as Saddam Hussain the president of Iraq.

The reasons given were that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction and might help Al- Qadea and therefore pose a threat to the American people and the world.

The strategies and tactics used by the Bush administration were what PR people are generally accused of in political scenario -- spin and manipulation.

The three weeks of Iraq war will go down in history where the entire world was taken for a ride by USA and its greatest ally UK .

Just a few examples of manipulation and spin used during the Iraq war...

1. The Bush administration bought the scientists who said the Saddam will use chemicals to contaminate and bring mass destruction. Of course they were not speaking the truth.

2. Embedded journalists who gave a sanitized picture of Iraq war.

3. Maximum imagery was shown with minimum insight

4. Setbacks and atrocities of the coalition army were glossed over.

5. Only military coverage of Jessica Lynch was shot and edited version handed over to the media.

6. Towns which were not won over were falsely reported as seized.

we Weapons of mass destruction !!!!!!!! Have they been found as yet?????

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B02E7DC1738F937A35757C0A9659C8B63http://berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/03/18_iraqmedia.shtml

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2003/nov/06/broadcasting.Iraqandthemedia

I came across this very interesting site on Nazi Propaganda.

http://www.historians.org/Projects/GIroundtable/Propaganda/Propaganda1.htm