Iraq

The Oil Factor

by Sheldon Rampton — September 28, 2002 - 10:00pm

"The world's biggest oil bonanza in recent memory may be just around the corner, giving U.S. oil companies huge profits and American consumers cheap gasoline for decades to come. And it all may come courtesy of a war with Iraq," writes Robert Collier. But the Bush administration and U.S. oil firms have stayed quiet on the subject of Iraqi oil.

Main Source: 
San Francisco Chronicle, September 29, 2002

Ours Not to Reason Why

by Sheldon Rampton — September 25, 2002 - 10:00pm

"The Bush administration campaign for war against Iraq has been an extravaganza of disingenuousness," writes Michael Kinsley. "The arguments come and go. Allegations are taken up, held until discredited, and then replaced. ... Two overarching concepts -- 'terrorism' and 'weapons of mass destruction' -- are drained of whatever intellectual validity they may have had and put to work bridging huge gaps in evidence and logic."

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Washington Post, September 26, 2002

Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammo

by Sheldon Rampton — September 25, 2002 - 10:00pm

KCSA PR Worldwide, whose clients include the Zionist Organization of America, is doing PR for the Christian Coalition to support the war in Iraq. The Christian Coalition is organizing a "Christian Solidarity for Israel Rally" and is urging its members to pray for the Iraqi people while we bomb them. Some PR counselors see a conflict of interest and problems down the road when Jewish and fundamentalist Christian agendas collide.

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O'Dwyer's PR Daily, September 26, 2002

Spying in Iraq: From Fact to Allegation

by Sheldon Rampton — September 23, 2002 - 10:00pm

"Nothing makes a newspaper prouder than a juicy foreign-policy scoop. Except, it seems, when the scoop ends up raising awkward questions about a U.S. administration's drive for war," writes Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR). "Back in 1999, major papers ran front-page investigative stories revealing that the CIA had covertly used U.N. weapons inspectors to spy on Iraq for the U.S.'s own intelligence purposes. ...

Main Source: 
FAIR, September 24, 2002

Censorship and Propaganda From The Gulf War To Today

by Laura Miller — September 23, 2002 - 10:00pm

"I would say that the greatest threat to democracy right now in the United State is George Bush's casual use of propaganda, and sometimes lies, to advance his case against Iraq," Harper's publisher Rick MacArthur told Democracy Now's Amy Goodman. MacArthur is also author of "The Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the Gulf War." Goodman asked MacArthur to revisit the elder Bush White House's control of the press corps during that administration's Persian Gulf War. Journalists then faced strict Pentagon control, including no freedom of movement and PR escorts at all times.

Main Source: 
Democracy Now! September 24, 2002

Waging War on Iraq to Win the November Elections

by John Stauber — September 20, 2002 - 10:00pm

"Senior Republican Party officials say the prospect of at least two more weeks of Congressional debate on Iraq is allowing their party to run out the clock on the fall election, blocking Democrats as they try to seize on the faltering economy and other domestic concerns as campaign issues. ... The emerging dynamic has produced growing if quiet optimism among Republicans that they will be able to turn back the Democratic drive to take control of the House. ... Scott Reed, a Republican consultant, said: 'The secret to the election now is to beat the clock.

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New York Times, September 21, 2002

Selling the War

by Sheldon Rampton — September 20, 2002 - 11:14am

"The reasons for a new attack on Iraq have been presented in a series of press-friendly promotional moments that have been long on promises and short on facts," says Moveon.org. "Timing has been a critical factor -- it is no coincidence, for example, that the climax of the push has come immediately after the anniversary of Sept.

Main Source: 
http://www.moveon.org/moveonbulletin/bulletin4.html

The Battle of the Band

by Sheldon Rampton — September 17, 2002 - 10:00pm

"We're getting the band together," White House Communications Director Dan Bartlett told the group on their first conference call last week. "The 'Band' is made up of the people who brought you the war in Afghanistan -- or at least the accompanying public-relations campaign," explains Martha Brant.

Main Source: 
Newsweek, September 18, 2002

US Plans PR Blitz on Saddam

by Sheldon Rampton — September 16, 2002 - 10:00pm

"The Bush Administration is to launch a multimillion-dollar PR blitz against Saddam Hussein, using advertising techniques to persuade crucial target groups that the Iraqi leader must be ousted," reports Tim Reid. "The campaign will consist of dossiers of evidence detailing Saddam's breaches of UN resolutions, and will be launched this week at American and foreign audiences, particularly in Arab nations sceptical of US policy in the region. ...

Main Source: 
Times (UK), September 17, 2002

Bush's Calculated Pursuit of Validation

by Sheldon Rampton — September 15, 2002 - 10:00pm

"If nothing else, the Bush administration has succeeded in making 'Should we attack Iraq?' the most-considered political question in the US today," observes PR Week.

Main Source: 
PR Week, September 16, 2002
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