Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has shut down its website. The state of Pennsylvania has decided to remove environmental information from its website. Risk management plans, which provide information about the dangers of chemical accidents and how to prevent them, have been removed from the web site of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
"In the days since the United States launched its armed and diplomatic responses to the Sept. 11 atrocities, few phrases have passed the lips of American leaders as often as 'this is not a war against Islam.' But as civilian casualties from American airstrikes in Afghanistan begin to pile up, and as the timeline for military action threatens to stretch into months, growing anti-American riots in the Muslim world are underscoring the message's limited reach."
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
"As this new, modern war unfolds, it has become inarguable that the weapon of speech craft is among the most powerful in the military arsenal," writes PR counselor Fraser Seitel, who examines the rhetorical techniques in speeches by George Bush, Tony Blair and Osama Bin Laden. "CEOs and communicators alike can learn from the skillful ways that Bush, our allies and even adversaries have used the content of their speeches to further their objectives," he writes.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
According to the Dow Jones Newswire, the U.S. military has paid an undisclosed amount of money for the exclusive rights to commercial satellite imagery of Afghanistan and all time that the satellite is over areas involved in Operation Enduring Freedom. The contract with Denver-based Space Imaging Inc., which began Oct. 7, is believed to be in the multi-million dollar range. It prevents anyone from taking pictures of the war zone. By buying the exclusive rights, the U.S.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Like many Americans, Pam Bottaro reacted to the 11 September attacks on New York and Washington with a mixture of horror and utter incomprehension. Although well educated and politically engaged, nothing she had read or seen on television had prepared her for an anti-American backlash. "Why do these people hate us so much?" was the question she kept hearing all around her. As Americans wake up to the need to better understand the world around us, "teach-ins" have come roaring back into fashion.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
In the wake of the government's multi-billion-dollar bailout of the airline industry, Public Citizen has compiled a report showing how airlines used aggressive lobbying and campaign contributions to turn the Federal Aviation Administration into its accomplice as it fought for years to stall, scale back and ignore specific security recommendations made by a 1996 presidential commission.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
There is an aching information vacuum at the center of the war on terrorism, which sources on both sides of the conflict -- both governments and terrorists -- are trying to fill. "The irony is that the US media have already proved willing to comply with military orders when it matters," observes Jay Rayner. "Seventeen news organisations knew three days before that the bombing of Afghanistan was to start on Sunday, and said nothing."
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
The Bush administration and members of Congress have called for renewed efforts to improve America's image in the Islamic world, with Bush worrying aloud that the U.S. is losing the propaganda war to Islamic extremists. "I'm amazed that there's such misunderstanding of what our country is about that people would hate us," Bush said. "We've got to do a better job of making our case." An expensive advertising campaign in the Arab world, coupled with beefed-up Voice of America broadcasts, is making little headway as these PR efforts encounter a skeptical audience.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Propagandist Osama bin Laden has robbed Americans of one of their most cherished liberties -- media freedom. It might be termed blank-check journalism -- the main news media of the United States sign away their right to make judgment calls because of vaguely hinted national security concerns. At the same time that the five major TV news organizations in the United States have agreed to self-censorship, the leaders of 21 journalism groups in the U.S.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
The UK Guardian reports, "Only five days after the bombing of Afghanistan began, Mr Blair made the extraordinary admission that the west was in danger of losing the propaganda war in Muslim states. He said: 'One thing becoming increasingly clear to me is the need to upgrade our media and public opinion operations in the Arab and Muslim world. There is a need for us to communicate effectively.'"
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