U.S. Government

U.S. Drops Cool $36 Million to Burson-Marsteller to Promote...Money

Submitted by Jonathan Rosenblum on

The federal treasury will pay out $36 million over five years to the Burson-Marsteller PR firm to promote redesigned $5 and $100 bills. According to the Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the bills need to be promoted and explained to businesses, the media and others in order to ensure that new security features, including "optically variable ink" and watermarks are fully understood.

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Main Source: 
PR Week (sub req'd), December 21, 2006
Topics: 
Marketing
Public Relations
U.S. Government

New Bills Challenge President Bush's Troop "Surge"

In a nationally televised address Wednesday night, President Bush announced a new plan to send 21,500 more American troops into Iraq to help settle the country’s increasing violence, particularly in the capital city of Baghdad. While Bush expressed confidence in his plan, most Americans did not appear to follow. A CNN poll taken after the speech found that 66% opposed this “surge” in troop levels, while only 32% supported it.

Iraq Messaging Cruz-ing for a Bruising

Submitted by Diane Farsetta on

Image from the Lincoln Group's websiteNewsweek reports on "a draft report recently produced by the Baghdad [U.S.] embassy's director of strategic communications Ginger Cruz" that the publication obtained. The report warns, "Without popular support from the US population, there is the risk that troops will be pulled back ...

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Main Source: 
Newsweek, January 15, 2007
Topics: 
Propaganda
U.S. Government
Iraq

Smithsonian-Showtime Contract Stymies Filmmakers

Submitted by Jonathan Rosenblum on

The Smithsonian Institution is defending a long-term multimillion dollar contract that limits access to some filmmakers in favor of Showtime Networks, a CBS affiliate. The scale of the contract with Showtime enables "an exponential growth in filming projects," Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small told the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

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Main Source: 
Associated Press, December 16, 2006
Topics: 
Arts / Culture
Media
U.S. Government

Coming to the Table in 2007: Cloned Beef?

Submitted by Jonathan Rosenblum on

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has tentatively determined that milk and meat from cloned cows are safe to eat and indistinguishable from non-cloned cows. The agency may complete approval procedures for consumption of the animals and milk before the end of 2007.

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Main Source: 
The New York Times (sub req'd), December 28, 2006
Topics: 
Agriculture
Food Safety
Genetic Engineering
U.S. Government

What Would the Other George Do? An Interview with the Author of "Saving General Washington"

Saving General Washington coverI spoke with author J.R. Norton in June of this year about his book, Saving General Washington: The Right Wing Assault on America's Founding Principles. The following excerpts are from an interview on "A Public Affair" on WORT (89.9 FM), community radio in Madison, WI, and from a follow up in-person interview.

JSP: Why do George Washington and the rest of the Founding Fathers need to be saved?

J.R. Norton: Well, it's a bit of metaphor. It's in part aimed at rehabilitating and reintroducing these founding figures of American history, but on a broader level, on a more important level, it's about reintroducing the values that these guys stood for. Certainly over the last five or six years, I think we've really lost sight of those virtues.

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