George Little, DoD plans better public relations in response to Drudge Report, social media and Internet coverage
The Department of Defense announced plans to increase its public affairs efforts due to the devastating effect independent media is having on the Pentagon’s ability to control its news and the public’s response to “bad news.”
Infowars detailed the Thursday event, the DoD noted the DrudgeReport.com and the fact that, because of citizen journalists, social media and other online platforms reporting news in real time, the public is more quickly becoming aware of the constant patterns of contradictions.
“..we cannot hide our bad news stories. Bad news gets out one way or the other and we must come to terms with telling bad stories as well as the good,” the secretary of defense for public affairs, George Little, stated at the Defense Media Activity’s headquarters on Fort Meade in Maryland.
“When bad things happen, the American people should hear it from us, not as a scoop on the Drudge Report,” Little said.
During the Q&A session a staff sgt. questionedthe efforts to spin the stories.
“My question is: you mentioned that we need to start telling the story about the bad news as well as the good, and the issue I see that we’re facing… It seems like we have this culture in our career to kinda glaze over these issues and put out this positive press, and “No, our jets are fine,” and so with the good and the bad, I don’t think the American people actually trust us to deliver accurate information.
“What’s the plan to change that in the way ahead, because to continue the way we have, to continue to put that positive spin, it feels like we’re losing a lot of our audience because they’re not listening, because we keep saying the same thing over, everything is okay, and it’s not…
“… Is there a plan to kinda change the way that we think? Because as it is, a lot of people, from what I can see, are going through, “We’re putting out mindless propaganda,” is what some of us feel that we’re putting out and what the American people feel that we’re putting out, so how do we change this?”
Check out even more coverage and commentary at InfoWars
President Barack Obama meets with senior advisors in the Roosevelt Room. 2/16/09. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
[…] George Little, DoD Plans Better Public Relations In Response To Drudge Report, Social Media And Inte…The Global DispatchThe Department of Defense announced plans to increase its public affairs efforts due to the devastating effect independent media is having on the Pentagon’s ability to control its news and the public’s response to “bad news.” Infowars detailed the Thursday event, the DoD noted the DrudgeReport.com and the fact that, because of citizen journalists, social media and other online platforms reporting news in real time, the public is more quickly becoming aware of the constant patterns of contradictions. […]
[…] George Little, DoD plans better public relations … Infowars detailed the Thursday event, the DoD noted the DrudgeReport.com and the fact that, because of citizen journalists, social media and other online platforms reporting news in real time, the public is more quickly becoming aware of the constant … Read more on The Global Dispatch […]