The role of image in political communication

Image refers to the public’s perception of an individual or institution. In the case of public figures image can be shaped by posture, language, clothing, family and through associations with other persons. British politicians from Margaret Thatcher to Gordon Brown and David Cameron have all undergone makeovers in order to become more appealing to potential voters.

Gordon Brown has changed from his time as Chancellor to his current role of Prime Minister; transforming from ‘a serious, brooding Scotsman, with his less orderly hair, crumpled suits and gnawed fingernails’ (BBC, 2007) into a serious, stiff Scotsman, with tamed locks (it’s possible Boris!!), tailored suits and well, I haven’t checked his fingernails lately, though it is a very tough habit to kick! Sporting a set of glisteningly white teeth (though in typical ‘celebrity’ fashion denies having any work done) and even occasionally opting for a more casual look, Brown has sought to soften his solemn image for a more approachable, down to earth character.

Families play a tremendously important role in making politicians seem more ‘human’ and in tune with prevailing values and morals. In fact, the British public is almost fearsome of the politician who doesn’t comply with this ‘family man’ role; Brown was rumoured to be gay prior to his marriage to, ironically, a PR executive who has been cited as an important driver behind her husband’s makeover.

In spite of the growing value placed on image development and management, a lot still has to be said for good ol’ personality. Bless his heart for all the attempts Gordon Brown has made to improve his appearance, but somehow I feel just as awkward watching him during a presentation as I do when I’m introducing someone whose name I can’t remember.

Reference

BBC (2007). Profile: Gordon Brown. [online] Available from:<http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/5238202.stm> [Accessed 10 March 2009]

The Obama Machine... Running Smoothly on the Dance and Campaigning Fronts!!!

There are a number of key lessons to be learnt from Obama’s successful presidential campaign; the overriding message highlighting the importance of ‘out of the box’ thinking. For decades, American politicians have embraced conventional approaches to presidential campaigning: utilizing traditional media, targeting the same audiences and participating in political rallies and debates.

Although all of these approaches have significant merit, the Obama team recognized there was a considerable segment of the voting population, particularly African-American and young voters, who were being neglected. By tapping into new media avenues such as Facebook, YouTube and MySpace, Obama adapted his language and presentation in order to engage and interact with potential youth voters.

Obama not only appealed to African-American and young voters but was able to transcend racial, cultural, class and age lines by seamlessly tailoring his delivery styles in order to meet the needs of his varying audiences. He recognized the importance of connecting with and relating to different people, and understood the vital role of all aspects of communication in this process: the message, speaking techniques, body language and avenues of delivery.

As a result, Obama tremendously benefitted from the highest voter turnout in 40 years (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2008) and his party enjoyed an increase in the Democratic vote from 28.7 percent in 2004 to 31.3 percent in 2008 (CNN, 2008).

References

CNN (2008). Report: ’08 turnout same as or only slightly higher than ‘04. [online] Available from: <http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/11/06/report-08-turnout-same-or-only-slightly-higher-than-04/> [Accessed 7 March 2009]

Encyclopaedia Britannica (2008). United States Presidential Election of 2008. [online] Available from: <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1335480/United-States-Presidential-Election-of-2008> [Accessed 7 March 2009]

Study Unveils PR’s Slow Acceptance of New Media

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Joni Wedderburn (Spokesperson) Indigo Public Relations CEO 1398 Marylebone Road London W23 K45 0207 431 7651 (office) 0207 485 8895 (fax) 0207 485 8895 (cell) Web site: http://www.indigopr.co.uk Blog: http://joni-prissues.blogspot.com/

Study Unveils PR’s Slow Acceptance of New Media

London, UK-- March 1, 2009

• Indigo PR commissioned by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) to examine the relationship between PR and new media
• Digital technologies play an increasingly important role in daily social interaction
• New media provides a wealth of opportunities to reach out to an organization’s key publics
• PR industry has failed to promote the benefits of new media to its clientele base
• PR has been ineffective in utilizing digital technologies to optimize business communication
• Several factors uncovered as the culprits for the sectors’ unwillingness to embrace new technologies
  

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QUOTES

‘Indigo PR has produced the definitive study on the role of public relations within the digital revolution. It highlights the industry’s lacklustre use of new media and how the sector’s attitude towards this engaging medium will impact its future success.’
-- Alan Shepherd, Chairman, CIPR

‘A concise yet discerning look at PR’s aversion to the new media phenomenon’
-- Jake Daniels, Technology Editor, The Times

‘The report sheds some light on an area, which has been previously subject to speculation rather than concrete research. By showcasing PR’s shortcomings with new media, the study is an insightful tool for specialists and students, as it provides an important base to engage discussion and improve practices within this field.’
-- Sue Smith, Professor, MA in Public Relations, University of Westminster

About Indigo PR

Indigo PR is a full-scale public relations firm offering strategic communication services across a variety of sectors including consumer, government, tourism, not-for-profit and corporate. We specialise in media relations, internal communications, campaign development, event planning and crisis management.

For more information about Indigo PR, please visit www.indigopr.co.uk .

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PR Slow to Adapt to New Media??

New media provides a wealth of opportunities to capture, engage and interact with a range of stakeholders. With more than a quarter of the UK population actively utilizing the Web, the internet offers businesses the unique opportunity to reach its publics in a quick, cost-effective manner. In order to be successful in today’s marketplace, companies must look to appease proactive and inquisitive audiences through avenues, which encourage two-way messaging. (Philips, 2001, p. 2/ p. 149).

David Phillips, author of Online Public Relations, agrees ‘there is a responsibility to e-enable and automate, to become more efficient and facilitate, create and promote the framework for advantageous enterprise-wide relationships with the organization’s constituency.’ (Philips, 2001, p. 3).

Despite the numerous advantages attributed to new media, the public relations sector has been criticized for its sluggish adoption of new technologies.

The video below discusses the prevailing reasons for the industry’s unwillingness to fully embrace the new media phenomenon. (Created Feb 20, 2009, Duration: 4:58 mins.)

Public Relations Slow To Adapt To New Media

View more presentations from joniwedd. (tags: services’ ‘communication)

Reference

Phillips, D. (2001). Online Public Relations. London: Kogan Page Limited.

Even Jamaica’s getting in on the ‘two way’ action!!

According to Tench and Yeomans ‘a democracy is or should be a two-way process, giving multiple opportunities for members of the public to communicate their own interests and concerns to the government at all levels of influence and sometimes transform public policy’ (Tench and Yeomans, 2006, p. 90). The previous People’s National Party (PNP) government of Jamaica mainly interacted with political opponents, international officials, high-powered investors and the media. Its relationship with the ‘ordinary’ Jamaican citizen was relegated to confirming lunch orders and an onslaught of political promises during election periods.

Today, both of the island’s main political parties have finally recognized the importance of interactivity and reciprocal communication with Jamaican nationals. The ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has established a website, which not only seeks to provide valuable information but also encourages feedback through chat rooms, blogs, emails and participation in several social media sites including Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr.

Additionally, the current Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, hosts a monthly, interactive talk show, Jamaica House Live, which provides citizens based locally and abroad to call in and discuss their concerns directly with the PM. The show has enjoyed overwhelming success resulting in its broadcast on 10 of the country’s radio stations and an extension of its time slot from an hour to an hour and a half.

The opposition PNP also utilizes the internet, which is currently accessibly by 55% of the population, to engage its supporters by providing news content, press releases, event calendars and streaming online video.

Despite their efforts, there is still development to be made in the country’s online political communications sector. A major deterrent of both parties’ websites is a lack of an efficient updating system as much of the content is outdated.

Both the JLP and PNP should be lauded for their attempts at improving contact with the island’s citizens. It’ll be interesting to see if all this ‘conversation’ turns into any form of beneficial action or if it is simply just another publicity campaign...

References

Jamaica Gleaner (2008). Internet usage shoots to 55%: 1.5 million Jamaicans surf the Web; Mullings aims for full penetration. [online] Available from: <http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20080629/business/business1.html> [Accessed 25 February 2009]

Tench, R. and Yeomans, L., (2006). Exploring Public Relations. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

How easily we forget....

Barack Obama is being hailed as the first US presidential nominee to extensively and efficiently utilize new media. President Obama and his campaign team undoubtedly revolutionized the relationship between digital technology and political communication. However, he is certainly not the first American politician to credit the internet as a key component of a winning campaign strategy.

Over a decade ago, long before the term ‘new media’ even existed, former pro-wrestler Jesse Ventura entered the 1998 Minnesota gubernatorial race. Entering as an ‘independent’, which usually spells instantaneously death in US politics; he was pitted against Republican and Democratic candidates, both of whom were well funded.

Ventura pioneered a guerrilla email campaign, which enabled him to reach out to young voters, organize rallies and educate the public on how to register to vote. Although overwhelmingly the underdog, Ventura went on to win the race and has cited his use of the internet as critical to his victory. After his election, he continued to have an online presence; hosting an official governor site and a more personalized page for his constituents.

Obama has certainly moved online political communication from Ventura’s rudimentary use of email and static web pages to a fully interactive interchange between his team and his various stakeholders.

References

BBC (2001). Internet lessons from US elections. [online] Available from: <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1372315.stm> [Accessed 24 February 2009]

CNN (1999). Make electronic democracy work with email. [online] Available from: <http://edition.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9908/04/edemocracy.idg/> [Accessed 24 February 2009]

Iraq War: who really pays the price for war spin?

Following the September 11th attacks, the Bush administration began building its case for the necessity of war with Iraq. The public was constantly bombarded with the tremendously popular catch phrase: ‘weapons of mass destruction’, which was seemingly used as an answer for everything- a reason for war, a bid to protect the US and proof that Bush could pronounce 3 syllable words.

Six years on, with more than 4,000 US military casualties, a war bill estimated at US$3 trillion and still no discovery of any so-called WMDs, the former government is being accused of utilizing propaganda to gain public support for the war.

According to Garth Jowett and Victoria O’Donnell, authors of Propaganda and Persuasion, ‘a government should not lie to those who have elected it, [as] in the long run, it does so at its own peril’. (Jowett and O’Donnell, 2006, p. 319). Bush suffered from the lowest approval ratings of any president and significantly contributed to the country’s general disillusionment with the Republican Party. In the UK, Tony Blair, who was responsible for dragging his country into the conflict, attracted growing media cynicism and was the subject of the Hutton Inquiry, which questioned the government’s motives for entering the war.

But ultimately, it is not the propagandists and peddlers of the Iraq war who suffer. It is the thousands of families who have lost love ones in battle that pay the price for a conflict built on lies; weakened economies struggling in the midst of a global financial crisis and yet still having to fund an unpopular war; emotionally and physically wounded soldiers who will never fully recover from their participation in the conflict and Iraqis engulfed in a war-torn region with no sight of an end to the violence.

And what happens to those who so staunchly defended their action to invade Iraq? As outgoing president, Bush has retreated to his multi-million dollar lifestyle on his Texan ranch while former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was exonerated by the Hutton Inquiry and recently awarded the Dan David prize for his exceptional leadership.

A truly powerful message to further fuel future manipulators and liars.

References

BBC (2007). How Blair put the media in a spin. [online] Available from: <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6638231.stm> [Accessed 20 February 2009]

CNN (2003) Is lying about the reason for a war an impeachable offense? [online]
<http://edition.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/06/findlaw.analysis.dean.wmd/> [Accessed 20 February 2009]

Jowett, G. And O’Donnell, V. (2006). Propaganda and Persuasion. 4th Edition. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc.

Washington Post (2008). The Iraq War will cost us $3 trillion, and much more . [online] Available from:

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-yn/content/article/2008/03/07/AR200830702846.html>

[Accessed 20 February 2009]