Archive for America
April 20, 2008 at 8:15 pm · Filed under America, Issues Management, Media Industry
Television and radio require “good talent” to offer commentary and insights into the day’s issues. When there’s a lack of third party experts journalists resort to interviewing each other - Christina Amanpour on CNN is a favourite for commentary when an unaligned expert isn’t available.
In the Iraq propaganda war, the Bush Administration has used the same approach, according to today’s The New York Times (”Behind Analysts, the Pentagon’s Hidden Hand”). Military analysts were flown to Iraq and given behind the scenes tours to help them understand military strategy. Later these same people were recommended to television and radio stations as qualified, independent experts able to comment on the progress of the war.
It’s a great public relations practice but it was poorly executed.
Seems the insights provided were biased. One side was shown. Today those same unaligned experts are up in arms over their treatment. Kenneth Allard, who participated in the program, said:
“Night and day I felt we’d been hosed.”
If you want to get your point across then develop strong messages and get your spokespeople trained. They can site the company line on all media channels. Yet if you choose to engage third parties to support your case make sure they have access to all the information.
The White House’s strategy has backfired. By providing some of the people with some of the information, they ensured that sooner or later all of the people would see through the ruse - and demand more and more and more of the information originally blocked.
Do not engage third parties if you don’t want them to speak freely.
April 7, 2008 at 2:00 am · Filed under America, Issues Management, Public Relations
Mark Penn stopped riding two horses today - he was forced to step down as Hillary Clinton’s chief strategist. He continues as CEO of Burson-Marsteller. Seems he stopped in on a client meeting with the Government of Colombia - who hired B-M to promote the country (and a Free Trade Agreement that Hillary opposed).
So it wasn’t appropriate for Clinton’s strategist to attend THAT meeting. But no one’s raised the issue of Penn acting as CEO of a global PR firm while dedicating himself to the Clinton campaign. How much was Camp Hillary reimbursing B-M for those services?
The departure comes at an awful time for Hillary. She’s falling in the polls. She didn’t dodge sniper fire in Bosnia. She’d also called for healthcare reform referencing the case of a woman who died in childbirth in Ohio because she didn’t have healthcare coverage. Ooops - girl is fine, baby is fine and both had private healthcare cover.
Penn definitely brought immense depth to the Hillary campaign. He’s a top strategist who authored “Micro Trends”.
But running a global PR firm and leading a presidential campaign was bound to end in conflict of interest. That said it makes it easier for companies aligned with the Republican Party. They’re free to chose anyone but B-M - no conflict!
March 4, 2008 at 6:44 pm · Filed under America
Obama is on the back foot after a leaked memo had one of his trade advisors telling Canada not to worry about NAFTA. While the Illinois senator decried the free trade agreement - that’s led to a loss of jobs in rust belt states like Ohio - the memo says in discussions with Canadian officials Obama’s stance has been nothing more than political posturing.
The message was “wink wink - don’t worry.” Media are calling for answers and the issue was raised on floor of Canada’s Parliament. Canada’s PM said it was ludicrous that the country could be actively involved in selecting the next US president.
The bigger issue is the lack of understanding about the preferred candidate for president. Hillary is old news. McCain is older yet. We’ve seen them in action and have little more to learn about them.
But Barrack? He’s squeaky clean. And that’s good. He’s also largely unknown. And that’s not so good. America is making a dramatic swing to the new. But it’s also a dramatic swing to the unknown.
By rejecting Bush and all he’s done to the country, Americans are opting for a fresh start. But there’s still a lot unknown about this candidate. Who would he choose for his Cabinet? How would he handle an insurgent Iran? Can he soothe the economy?
Is Barrack Obama a visionary like FDR or a naive outsider like Carter? (Or a boob like Bush?) When pulling the lever in November, Americans will be voting for change and a fresh start. They may also be voting in an unknown.
For the sake of the country I hope he is all he’s proclaimed to be.
March 2, 2008 at 6:50 pm · Filed under America
I find it unsettling that the whole of the USA is encharged with selecting its Commander in Chief, yet the elections of recent memory have all come down to a state or two.
Gore lost in 2000 due to Florida. (Who can forget the ‘hanging chads’?) Four years later it was Ohio that lost it for Kerry. Tomorrow in America Hillary Clinton will lose in Ohio and Texas. She is under pressure to accept defeat and cede the nomination to Barrack Obama.
I returned to America after a ten year absence in 1999. Then Gore lost and Bush started and 9/11 ‘happened’ (is there a better verb here?). Six years later I left a nation that was divided and bitter.
The politics of diviseveness was an awful invention of Karl Rove, Bush’s senior political advisor. His strategy was to fuel dissent between the left and the right. It got so foul you couldn’t even raise the issue of politics - what if the other person disagreed? You wouldn’t be sparking a debate - you’d be on the receiving end of vitriol. My own brother votes Republican consistently. I had to point out the reason for our migration to Australia was the rancour we faced - and the institutionalised discrimination against same-sex bi-national couples.
So now Rove’s legacy is slowly fading. Republicans are as marginalised as chain smokers. Bush made many kick the habit - and those who still can’t quit are demonised. (Rove’s legacy lives?)
Yet tomorrow it’s polling day in Texas and Ohio. And after dozens of states and millions of votes, it will come down to the decisions of people in one or two states.
Goodbye Hillary - perhaps todays article in The Australian is right. Chelsea Clinton may be the next Clinton in the White House. Hopefully the Obamas will leave good policies in place for her to build on.
February 19, 2008 at 5:22 pm · Filed under America
The USA election in November is shaping up to be a mud-slinging festival.
Republicans will be coming from behind after eight years of a Bush presidency. Will they ask W to stump for McCain in the Heartland? Probably not. They’re likely to keep the President away to avoid any stains - much like Gore distanced himself from Clinton when campaigning in 2000. (And no, I didn’t mean THAT stain - get thee to a dry cleaner, Miss Lewinsky.)
But who will the Republicans face? If it’s Obama then yesterday the job for the Republicans got easier. Michelle Obama said in a speech, “…for the first time in my adult lifetime I am really proud of my country.”
Now if you’re not American that’s the equivalent of standing up in a crowded church and admitting you’re a kiddy fiddler.
Americans and patriotism go hand in hand. The Fourth of July is a boon for flag manufacturers. Everyone knows the words to the National Anthem (unlike Australia, where the best can only get through the first verse - and just what does “girth by sea” mean?). America is a nation defined by its nationality and abject pride. Michelle spat in the fountain of freedom.
It’s easy for the Republicans to generate dislike to Hillary Clinton. She’s always been a polarising figure. But Obama is fresh and new - and unknown. So like lions in a tense wait before pouncing, the Republican Party is waiting for the day Obama becomes the Democratic candidate. Michelle just gave them plenty of ammunition for a full on attack. And of course there’s the fact he’s from Chicago. Seems anyone from Al Capone’s home town is immediately a gangster, much like anyone from New Jersey is a high-haired airhead. (”Like, oh my god, that is so not true!”)
Put on your plastic coats - the mud is soon to fly!
February 14, 2008 at 7:37 pm · Filed under America
The chocolate is gone and the roses are in the vase. Valentine’s Day is well and truly over. But you must review the latest wordsmithing from The Washington Post. This time you had to develop a two sentence poem - the first declaring passion and love, and the second negating that with hate or disharmony.
Reminds me: Someone once said hate is the opposite of love. It isn’t. Hate is too passionate so it has more in common with love than we’d like to acknowledge. The opposite of love is anitpathy. Not caring at all is as far from love as you can be. Right?
Now onto those couplets…
My darling, my lover, my beautiful wife:
Marrying you has screwed up my life.
I see your face when I am dreaming.
That’s why I always wake up screaming.
Kind, intelligent, loving and hot;
This describes everything you are not.
Love may be beautiful, love may be bliss,
But I only slept with you ’cause I was pissed.
I thought that I could love no other
– that is until I met your brother.
Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you.
But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead, the sugar bowl’s empty and so is your head.
I want to feel your sweet embrace;
But don’t take that paper bag off your face.
I love your smile, your face, and your eyes
Damn, I’m good at telling lies!
My love, you take my breath away.
What have you stepped in to smell this way?
My feelings for you no words can tell,
Except for maybe “Go to hell.”
What inspired this amorous rhyme?
Two parts vodka, one part lime.
January 31, 2008 at 10:04 pm · Filed under America, Issues Management
The confirmation hearings for USA Attorney General candidate Mukasey offered an interesting twist on language and legality. It all revolves around waterboarding.
Sadly this is not at all like wakeboarding. That sport involves slicing across the wake of a fast-moving speedboat then grabbing air in gravity-defying acrobatics.
Instead waterboarding simulates drowning. Candidates are tied to a board with a hemp bag tied over their heads. Water is streamed over their faces making breathing nearly impossible. “Simulated drowning”. Who thinks up this stuff?
When asked his opinion on waterboarding, Mukasey said the practice was not considered torture so therefore was legal. Yet - and here come the weasel words - he said if he were subjected to waterboarding it would feel like torture.
Frankly the subtlety is lost on me.
To gain a greater understanding of the issue, see The New York Times. Their article starts explaining the differences:
Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey said Wednesday that while he would consider it torture if he underwent the harsh Central Intelligence Agency interrogation technique known as waterboarding, the practice was not necessarily illegal, and he would not rule out its use in the future. (Source: The New York Times 31 January 2008)
So while it may FEEL like torture, waterboarding is not necessarily torture - so therefore not illegal. Or legal. Or not?
See why I’m confused?
January 29, 2008 at 11:36 pm · Filed under America, Media Industry
I love tabloids. These short-style newspapers are made for the masses and can condense a story into poignant headlines. A decade ago honeymooners north of Sydney were attacked by a Great White. He didn’t survive. “The Daily Telegraph” got an exclusive interview. “Shark Bride Tells” was the tear sheet for that edition. (Tear sheets are the small posters outside the news agent.)
What more do you need to know? Oh - “Photos Inside” was below. That helped.
Thanks to “The Economist” for pointing out another great tabloid headline. In their article bemoaning the high profile role Bill Clinton is taking in his wife’s campaign, they note Bill fell asleep in a Harlem church service commemorating the late, great Martin Luther King Jr. “Bill Has a Dream” was the headline - next to a photo of the sleeping ex-president.
Ain’t sparsity grand?
Clients complain about headlines. The messages were well considered - and the media training set the client up for a great interview. Yet while the article is good the headline is contentious. Why didn’t that get fixed?
Journalists generally don’t write their own headlines. They offer their stories with suggested titles but headline writing is the purview of the sub-editor. And for the cover of a tabloid it’s the editor’s job.
Wanna see what it’s like? Take this fictional scenario:
Campaigning in Orlando, Florida presidential hopeful John McCain slips and falls while visiting Disney World - breaking his nose.
Quick! The presses are waiting! What’s the headline for the cover of a salacious, muck-raking tabloid?
Please send along your favourites.
January 22, 2008 at 5:41 am · Filed under America
The ads were always hard to miss in America. “Been denied credit?” “Ever have trouble getting a loan?” Bad Credit? No problem!”
Seems there’s been a problem.
The multi-billion dollar write-offs for sub-prime lending have been made by the major USA banks this week. That’s exacerbated fears of a recession in the world’s largest economy. Today the markets are voting on President Bush’s economic stimulus plan - and they hate it. Markets in Europe and Asia fell 5 to 7 percent yesterday. Only Martin Luther King Day in America averted a catastrophe there.
Be on the look out for a day of record losses when the New York Stock Exchange opens today - led by banking and financial services stocks.
Sad news for those “bad news borrowers” who suddenly find themselves with jacked-up interest rates and failing lenders. Sadder yet for the fixed income retirees who suddenly see their investments fall.
Seems there is no such thing as an easy loan…
January 15, 2008 at 9:02 pm · Filed under America
With all the noise surrounding Hillary and Obama, it’s hard to remember that the Republicans also have to pick a candidate for President. We’re in a rare race for the White House. The sitting President has already served two terms so he’s disqualified from running again. And the current Vice President is: (multiple choice)
- Too old
- Too unpopular
- Too evil
- Too smart
- All of the above
So across the nation Republican candidates vie to be selected as their party’s preferred candidate.
It’s funny having grown up in this system but it all makes sense to me. However not a day goes by when an Australian doesn’t remark on the utter complexity of the American voting system. I disagree until conversations turn to the Electoral College. How could George Bush lose the popular vote and win the election? I have to say I’m equally baffled.
But I digress.
The Republican field is crowded with a Mormon, a fundamentalist preacher, a Vietnam POW, New York’s 9/11 Mayor and a man called Huckabee. And these are just the front runners. As weeks progress the field will winnow. Not only do candidates face the excruciating scrutiny of the media and the non-stop activity, they must also fund their campaigns. And when poll place drops so do the funds.
By April we’ll know who is heading each party’s race to the White House. And then feathers will fly and there’ll be tears before bedtime!
Let the race begin!
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