Pentagon Panel: U.S. Must Sell 'Good News'

Pentagon Panel: U.S. Must Sell 'Good News'

blog.wired.com

"The strategic communication problem is to make good news as entertaining as bad news," says a new report by the Defense Science Board, a senior-level Pentagon advisory panel that normally looks at science and technology issues.
...But what is strange about this report (and perhaps the majority of reports I've seen on strategic communication) is that it discusses the issue as if convincing people to like the United States is a matter of simply crafting the right messages.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.blacklistednews.com

So be on the look out for strategically planned and made "good news" stories. Just another way to confuse the people as to what is the truth. I can't believe they want to make a White House position for this.

blog.wired.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Great find. It seems to me that the PTB can tell that the citizenry is at a breaking point. Too many more negative news info-bombs would surely set about radical change in the U.S. This article clearly demonstrates the power of the Silent Weapon - they can use it however they choose to get the desired results. This is an attempt to manage us through information. Input/Output.

Flagged and starred.

reply to post by kosmicjack


Hey kosmic. Ya know, I find it weird that they are just now trying to come up with the idea of selling good news. You would think they would have realized sooner that they needed to do something that goes along with the way they "sell" bad news. It does seem easier to sell bad news as people feel the need to see bad things happening over good things. Check out this story from yahoo that shows how people crave violence like they do sex. Pretty interesting.

The mouse brain is thought to be analogous to the human brain in this study, which could shed light on our fascination with brutal sports as well as our own penchant for the classic bar brawl.

Humans crave violence

The "art of persuasion" is a science, sometimes overt, sometimes subtle... oh my. What to do when your target audience is "contrary"? Co-opt and recruit them by looking to the unique cultural opportunities to "win friends and influence people". Good news, bad news. Mindspace. A great deal of effort is spent to "sell" both. I bet it's expensive at times... 4 legs good.

Here's a unique "new-ish" application of an old, old-tactic to strategically curry favor and favorable interest in your potentially most "naturally opposed" demographic market segment... It's from the UK and uses practitioners of what we used to call "vita parcour". Today it's called urban "free-running". A CBC video clip a couple a four days old that should open in WMP. There may have been a thread on ATS about such tactics being employed creatively in mass "perception adjustment" strategies. Marketer's "love thine enemy" is the slow-blade' of "positioning".

"CBC - Jan 28, 2008: The National, MoD Urban Warfare And Freerunning"

You can lead a horse to water and if you can persuade it to believe...

Cheers,

Vic

[edit on 3-2-2008 by V Kaminski]

reply to post by palehorse23

Being honest, couldn't complete download pdf military report in timely manner with my connection at moment. But saw first pic of Iraqi(?) holding up purple stained finger, sig voting.

So, will this good news be represented thusly--
Purple Stain Showing Up On Iaqi Fingers, Related to Mass UFO Sightings or Outbreak of Mystery Disease?

They've gotten good at selling bad news, war equals finding WMD, liberation, etc. rather than bombs falling on citizens and destroying cities, causing children to weep, dead in streets (things very familiar to European cousins).

So now the problem is making good news more exciting, with impact and longer shelf life like American Idol?

Yes, violence and sex do sell. To wit, what is top seller for internet...also, this is my rifle this is my gun one is for fighting the other for fun. Missiles as phallic symbols.

Humans nowadays sure could use some training in violence management to survive better together as a species.

a poll asking what american's think the biggest issue facing the united states is was reveleald to be : the economy


perhaps this sent some shivers down the spine of the pentagon , because unlike the iraq war which they can spin since it is thousands of miles away, the pentagon is a bit weary that they have some work to do to keep "american's dumbed down and focused on bread and circuses"

the blissfulness which the circuses provide allow the american's to be willfully ignorant to many things ; GMO foods, killing of millions of iraqi's for oil and dollar hegomeny, the frailty of a economy built on a ponzi pyramid developed by wall street built upon a bout to be rapidly depreciating housing market (the price correction so far has been mild in national median terms) and employment uncertainty thanks to consumer spending slowing (they hope they can stop this slowdown by manipulating and spinning the economic conditions so that they shape people's opinions in a positive light, whatever it takes, no matter how inaccurate the reports are) because the health of our economy depends on consumer spending, thus it is a "issue of national security" and all the propoganda has to be pulled out.

The pentagon does not want american's all of a sudden focused on economic upsets and shaping their future expectation that things will be worse (they will). this is actually a good idea IMO because if they don't do this, unemployment and consumer spending could tailspin leading to more and more riots (disorder) which can only be dealth with in accordance with more of an iron fist and police state response.

They will step up their efforts to mislead people that the worst is over and that the rebound is always just around the corner, knowing people's hope can help erase the fresh memories of past failed forecasts.

The question i have is since their is not good "economic" news will they start putting more "heart warming commercials and story's on the air" to get people feeling better in general? And do they think if people are "happier they will spend more", or they won't demand a gov't solution which can not be given?

I wonder if this idea is to get people in better moods so they keep spending or they don't revolt against the gov't or so that they don't notice the police state measures being taken up around them in advance of an economic downturn which has the capacity to go down in the history books.

[edit on 3-2-2008 by cpdaman]

Excellent thread as usual palehorse.

It has been blatantly apparent to me during the entire course of this admin that they constantly do this. They almost seem to live in their own reality where everything is "happy time", no matter how obviously disastrous the situation or issue is, or how concerned the populace is. It's really disturbing.

And even more disturbing, is it often WORKS. You still hear people parroting how wonderful things are going and what a great president Bush is. I can only scratch my head in bewilderment...

reply to post by palehorse23


re "Humans crave violence" link

Sounds like people need more organic food and great sex to counterbalance violence.

CPDAMAN i think your post hit the nail on the head. The circus has no allure when your stomach is rumbling.

reply to post by palehorse23


And insurgents like to send us badnews. I guess that makes it a good thing.

Tokyo Rose anyone?

Originally posted by cpdaman

The question i have is since their is not good "economic" news will they start putting more "heart warming commercials and story's on the air" to get people feeling better in general? And do they think if people are "happier they will spend more", or they won't demand a gov't solution which can not be given?

[edit on 3-2-2008 by cpdaman]

This "piece" is not the example I originally intended on posting and this isn't as "short and sweet" as those I have been noticing lately... as this "extended" version of the one that aired has a full cast...

Link:
Shell Commercial - Mini Documentary
(couldn't get the "You Tube Video" button to stop appending a trailing "\" which would then not resolve)

The design may not be obvious at first to the masses but the take away is that those working for the company are family members just like you and me and they care a great deal about the environment.

[edit on 4-2-2008 by spectre76]

[edit on 4-2-2008 by spectre76]