Things are not always what they seem to be.
And that is exactly the way some people like it.
When times are bad, they want us to think they are good and getting better.
When damage is being done, they hope we will be unable to see the clear cutting behind the line of trees cleverly left to block the sight of drivers along the road system.
Long ago, Alice discovered that Life really was a Mad Tea Party and Wonderland was a clever theme park meant to displace that tedious thing called reality.
Concealing the truth from public view has become a dishonorable but lucrative profession in many nations as power brokers seek to maintain their grip by distorting perceptions of reality. Good citizens in this brave world will be compliant and accepting rather than challenging and critical.
Power brokers hope to continue doing bad works by making them seem like good works.
Some call this SPIN. Others call it MisInformation. Still others call it propaganda.
Just Say It Isn't So
Some of this phenomenon is caused by wishful thinking. Sometimes folks have a low tolerance for bad news and reality. Sometimes they find reality shows (a true oxymoron) a huge relief from the real world. At a time when action heroes and wrestlers become governors or world leaders, the cartoon replaces serious drama while fiction, melodrama, soap opera and fantasy shove aside that boring thing we used to call LIFE.
Ironically, the BIG LIE is easier to swallow than the BITTER TRUTH.
Next thing we note true believers swallowing the latest party line hook, line and sinker without questioning its veracity.
Do we want our children to grow up embracing such weak standards of veracity?
Must verity and veracity become orphaned twins, casualties of a cynical age willing to sacrifice truth to the winds of expediency and fashion?
Shall we allow presumption and bias to substitute for judgment and reason, displacing longstanding traditions of gathering evidence and looking before leaping?
Soft Truth, Soft Evidence and Soft Drinks
Some of the population is content with coddling and pandering. Few leaders are rewarded for confronting or communicating the difficult truth.
"Tell us what we want to hear!" the voices shout in chorus as a host of leaders and PR merchants churn out messages of reassurance and optimism to mask the fumes of cultural landfills.
Media Literacy?
Is there a literacy lurking here some place? Is there a curriculum?
What should schools do to equip students to live in these times of pessimism dressed up as optimism and of greed masquerading as compassion and generosity?
In the past we have relied upon media literacy to arm students against misinformation, propaganda and grotesque marketing, but it may not be sufficient to the task at hand.
When veracity is sent packing to loud applause from the general public, the society lurches like a runaway freight train screaming down a mountain grade. The Roman Circus kept folks happy and entertained as Rome's reach exceeded its grasp and its world ambitions led to its eventual decline. Efforts at entertainment often seems to peak when cultures reach self-defeating extremes. Recent freakish experiments with reality shows should serve as a warning as we lurch into a new century celebrating the eating of insects and the firing of apprentices.
Sugar-Coatings
When air pollution, water pollution and other forms of corruption are packaged attractively as social benefits, we lurch and stumble away from decency. We lose our way. We wander and stumble. The bitter pill starts to taste like candy. Why worry about water quality when we can mask the taint and the sour flavor with enhancers and artificial sweeteners?
How would you compare this to be a reality and not a perception of the situation in Nigeria?
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Saturday, January 29, 2011
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Happy New Year, Public Relator
The main goal of a public relations department is to enhance a company’s reputation. Staff that work in public relations, or as it is commonly known, PR, are skilled publicists. They are able to present a company or individual to the world in the best light. The role of a public relations department can be seen as a reputation protector.
The business world of today is extremely competitive. Companies need to have an edge that makes them stand out from the crowd, something that makes them more appealing and interesting to both the public and the media. The public are the buyers of the product and the media are responsible for selling it.
Public relations provide a service for the company by helping to give the public and the media a better understanding of how the company works. Within a company, public relations can also come under the title of public information or customer relations. These departments assist customers if they have any problems with the company. They are usually the most helpful departments, as they exist to show the company at their best.
PR also helps the company to achieve its full potential. They provide feedback to the company from the public. This usually takes the form of research regarding what areas the public is most happy and unhappy with.
People often have the perception of public relations as a group of people who spin everything. Spin can mean to turn around a bad situation to the company’s advantage. It is true that part of the purpose of public relations is to show the company in a positive light no matter what. There are certain PR experts that a company can turn to for this particular skill.
The public often think of PR as a glamorous job. Public relations people seem to have been tarred with the image of constant partying and networking to find new contacts. The reality is usually long hours and hard work for anyone involved in public relations.
There are certain skills necessary to work in the world of PR. These include a very high level of communication skills, written and verbal. The PR person must also be very adept at multitasking and time management. He or she may also have some form of media background or training in order to understand how the media and advertising work. Organizational and planning skills are also important in public relations.
The PR worker must also be able to cope very well under pressure. He or she must have the ability to cope with a barrage of questions from the media and the public. If a company comes under critical attack, it is the PR department who must take control of the situation. They must effectively answer the criticism and turn it around in order to protect the company’s reputation.
A public relations worker usually has some form of relevant college qualification. Competition for jobs in PR is fierce. A talented public relations person has the opportunity to work up from a junior account executive to an account director in around five years. This is not a nine to five job; the hours are long and can be stressful. However, for successful PR workers, the pay is good and the perks may be even better.
The business world of today is extremely competitive. Companies need to have an edge that makes them stand out from the crowd, something that makes them more appealing and interesting to both the public and the media. The public are the buyers of the product and the media are responsible for selling it.
Public relations provide a service for the company by helping to give the public and the media a better understanding of how the company works. Within a company, public relations can also come under the title of public information or customer relations. These departments assist customers if they have any problems with the company. They are usually the most helpful departments, as they exist to show the company at their best.
PR also helps the company to achieve its full potential. They provide feedback to the company from the public. This usually takes the form of research regarding what areas the public is most happy and unhappy with.
People often have the perception of public relations as a group of people who spin everything. Spin can mean to turn around a bad situation to the company’s advantage. It is true that part of the purpose of public relations is to show the company in a positive light no matter what. There are certain PR experts that a company can turn to for this particular skill.
The public often think of PR as a glamorous job. Public relations people seem to have been tarred with the image of constant partying and networking to find new contacts. The reality is usually long hours and hard work for anyone involved in public relations.
There are certain skills necessary to work in the world of PR. These include a very high level of communication skills, written and verbal. The PR person must also be very adept at multitasking and time management. He or she may also have some form of media background or training in order to understand how the media and advertising work. Organizational and planning skills are also important in public relations.
The PR worker must also be able to cope very well under pressure. He or she must have the ability to cope with a barrage of questions from the media and the public. If a company comes under critical attack, it is the PR department who must take control of the situation. They must effectively answer the criticism and turn it around in order to protect the company’s reputation.
A public relations worker usually has some form of relevant college qualification. Competition for jobs in PR is fierce. A talented public relations person has the opportunity to work up from a junior account executive to an account director in around five years. This is not a nine to five job; the hours are long and can be stressful. However, for successful PR workers, the pay is good and the perks may be even better.
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