Submitted by John Stauber on
Bill Berkowitz writes that "a relatively quick war against an overwhelmed and outmatched foe -- sanitized of civilian casualties -- has been a tonic for a Pentagon hungry for good publicity. ... Embedding reporters is the brainchild of Victoria 'Torie' Clarke, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. Clarke brings considerable PR experience to the task of winning the spin war. She recently worked with Hill and Knowlton, the public relations firm heavily involved in Gulf War I, and prior to that she was president of Bozell Eskew Advertising, an issue advocacy and corporate communications company. ... At the Pentagon, Clarke, the first woman to hold her position, 'is doing a great job,' according to Kevin McCauley, the editor of O'Dwyer's PR Daily. 'She's in there with generals in their fifties and sixties, she has everyone on message and the fact that she's a woman tends to put a softer spin on things.' "
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