(4/2011) The Public Relations Of Political And International Chaos

Joseph Honick–

Even as a child, if my mother  caught me reading comic books when it was homework time, she would clearly ‘redirect’ my actions and get back to where I was supposed to be.

One of the major and boggling realities right now is the almost juvenile political kickboxing among all the elements more interested in mutually assured destruction than the welfare of the nation and the world so much embroiled in terrible conflict and upheaval.

 Very much a part of all this inexcusable foolishness is some small army of public relations operatives helping the various sides to ‘position’ themselves for elections more than a year away.

Worst of all, the irresponsibility cuts across all party lines, with each laying claim to what is right and necessary, whether in the area of domestic economic problems, international wars or political contention.

These realities must be causing either intensive joy among our weak friends and genuine enemies or some jangled nerves among our real friends who are confused by our lack of concentration on one set of problems or another.

And why should it be any different?  GOP leadership long ago announced its principal goal the virtual subversion of anything President Obama and his party might advance, Democratic leadership seems unable to gain as much as an even hand in budget negotiations as the President presses forward with new and confusing strategies in the Middle East.

About the only clue we can extract from the Middle East matter was the loose-lips announcement we had CIA “operatives” on the ground in Libya calling in air strikes.  For those with experience in such matters, this revelation suggests the possibilities in other restless countries in that region helping to stir the political pots and calling them “sudden uprisings for democracy.”

Media are not to be excused for their eager participation, excited as they are by the tragic dramas playing out in Japan after looking like fools breathlessly reporting the most minimal events when the revolution was in full swing in Egypt.

In short, all of this has been a press huckster’s dream while millions of American remain unemployed,  a housing industry goes down the drain and neither political party seems much concerned.

Amid all this, one  particular element remains quietly and quite remarkably not only stable but apparently quite financially satisfied with the stuff flying all over the place:  defense industry contractors.  Daily contract awards in the hundreds of millions and sometime billions are reported by the United States Department of Defense in press releases read by some and hardly known of by most……even as the Republicans in Congress scream bloody murder about budget deficits.

Just as peachy are the reports of hundreds of millions invested with taxpayer money to buy PR services for the military.  In just one such contract award,according to the Odwyer PR News, The U.S. Army has enlisted McCann WorldGroup for another tour of duty effective April 7.Interpublic’s Team McCann, which has Weber Shandwick handling PR, developed the “Army Strong” campaign. It has worked the account since 2005.

The renewed contract is for one-year with annual option periods during the next four year. It is worth from $185 to $200M annually for advertising, Hispanic outreach, digital, media buying, PR, and recruitment duties.

IPG has 300 staffers on the Army business.

It would seem logical for media who might be really concerned about all these conflicting interests to  report how public relations operatives inside and outside government are handling all of these to protect specific industrial and political interests.

In an era when so many are demanding something called “transparency” and higher ethical behavior,  some pretty talented opinion technicians would seem to have won the day for their clients but hardly for the nation.

Joseph J. Honick is an international consultant to business and government and writes for many publications. Honick can be reached at [email protected]

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