posted on Sep, 16 2003 @ 12:55 AM
Well, if the Pentagon can fail to account for a trillion dollars (US$1,000,000,000,000), then a billion in failed universal public relations
shouldn't be a problem.
I have a friend who has submitted articles for the dismal, pro-US "Hi" magazine launched to middle Eastern markets last month. That is an
interesting one to watch.
Meanwhile taxpayer money goes to cover the Bush admin's great frauds... and nobody buys the honey-coated lies and deceit.
www.usatoday.com...
$1 billion international image campaign isn't enough to buy U.S. love
WASHINGTON � The Bush administration spends $1 billion a year trying to polish the United States' image around the world, yet polls show
anti-Americanism rising to record levels, especially in Muslim and Arab nations where the government is concentrating its efforts.
Now, a new report from Congress' General Accounting Office explains why the federal government's efforts at "public diplomacy" have been such a
failure.
The report, released Sept. 4, concluded that the State Department's efforts have been scattershot and uncoordinated, foreign service officers charged
with promoting the nation's image too often get stuck filling out paperwork, and one in five foreign service officers who are supposed to be helping
America's image aren't fluent enough in the language of the country in which they're stationed.
Most damning, the report said the government isn't even trying to scientifically measure whether its public relations efforts are having any effect
on foreign hearts and minds. Instead, it gauges success through anecdotes or even by how many speeches a local ambassador gives.
(Article continues at link...)