The new power behind the throne

Ultime de mes travaux chez joe mais pour une fois un de reflexion et de qualité tant le sujet m'a paru difficile à cerner et le concept de "spin doctor" difficile à cerner... Bref pour tout ceux qui sont intéréssés par l'évolution récente et superficielle de la politique, peut-être y trouverez-vous un début de réponse...

The eighties had seen the triumph of the advertising executive as the best friend of politicians. He was seen as an indispensable ingredient to victory. In France, Jacques Seguela, who was in charge of François Mitterand’s campaigns, is a case in point. The nineties have been characterised by the advent and the rise of a new kind of media adviser: spin-doctors. As politicians have come to realize that they live and die by the media, they have understood that they need not only to have a good image, but also to shape the agenda of the media, to create the news. And spin-doctors are at the core of this political news management.

A basic way to control journalists is to generate a publicity stunt. The PR manufactured pseudo-events will favourably impress the audience and make the headlines whereas it is all put on. The more entertaining the “scoop” is, the better it is, for it will draw viewers. Consequently it will be hard for journalists to resist the temptation to publish it, turning newspapers into nothing more than publicity sheets. Following the election in 1997, word from Labour at the British channel ITN was that Cherie Blair was giving parties for disadvantaged children in the Rose Garden of Number 10. It was decided to anchor that evening's 5:40 news from the garden. The broadcast was quite successful and Labour went up in the polls. But it was later revealed that these parties were no new thing - Mrs Major had been doing it for years!.

Spin-doctors can resort to “leaks” to gain the attention of journalists. Media are fond of gossip, of Cabinet rivalry stories that are sometimes depicted to them as “exclusive”. They are likely to publish the allegations without a second-thought. In other words, why is this piece of news disclosed to them? What is the hidden agenda behind it? For example, in October 2003, a leak from the White House revealed that the wife of the former Diplomat Joseph Wilson was a CIA agent under cover. But this leak was all but fortuitous and was probably orchestrated by Karl Rove - President Bush’s adviser- himself. As a matter of fact, Wilson became Bush’s pet hate when he accused the Bush administration of manipulating US intelligence in order to exaggerate Iraq’s threat. This leak was a means for the Bush camp to discredit an opponent. It was not a treat to the press, which helped the President to remain “credible”.

To light a backfire is another way of influencing reporters. It’s a classic spinner's tactic to distract the press from a story that could damage their client’s reputation. It was likely to be the case in the David Kelly affair. To shield Tony Blair from the consequences of his “sexed-up” report on WMD, his famous spin-doctor Alistair Campbell opened fire on the BBC, its reporter Andrew Gilligan and his mysterious mole. It worked (even if Campbell was forced to resign): after Kelly’s suicide, all the blame was put on the BBC and Blair stayed in power. Another example of this strategy was the notorious e-mail of Jo Moore in 2001, another government spinner, “It’s now a very good day (September 11th) to get out anything we want to bury.”

Finally there is also a more insidious means of manipulating journalists. Control can be achieved through the use of a specific language –often based on euphemisms- by spin-doctors. During the Gulf war and with less success during the Kosovo war (dissenting voices were numerous, especially at the BBC), journalists took up the rhetoric used by the Allied Forces and spoke of “clear and precise weapons”, “humanitarian war”. They helped to popularize the concept of a “righteous war” with no casualties, thus increasing the popular support for government, although the continuous bombings had claimed 200.000 Iraqi lives.

However the spin-doctors’ star might be fading, journalists are becoming extremely wary and critical of the way they are treated by communication officials. And the spin-doctor may soon become synonymous with “Rasputin”.