This is why Israel will always Lose the PR Battle

You may have read reports of the former Israeli soldier who posted photos of herself sitting next to blindfolded and handcuffed Arab prisoners.  Like the "dancing soldiers" video, popular a couple of months ago, the photos are in bad taste, at the least, destructive at worst.  (I'm not providing links to these images because I do not want to do my part in perpetuating them.)

What's the big deal?  It's simple, really.  A picture, it is said, is worth one thousand words.  And with every juvenile posting propagated by Israeli progeny, the case for Israel's defense becomes increasingly problematic.

As a kid I was taught that I represent all Jews.  When I litter, someone will say, "Look at that Jewish kid littering," and NOT, "Look at Alan littering."  It's exactly the same thing with young Israelis.  They have an obligation to think ahead 10 steps to the possible reputational repercussions of their actions.  Adding insult to stupidity, is that Israeli soldiers - who are as technologically advanced as anyone - think that by posting such material on the Internet, it wouldn't spread like wildfire across the Globe.

So, this is why Israeli will forever be playing catch-up and defense against itself: Israelis across the board need to understand they play a crucial role in their country's - and people's - reputations.  It isn't only an issue to be managed by elected officials and "someone else."  Every single citizen must take responsibility and behave accordingly.

Public relations, as I am fond of saying, is about what you do and NOT what you say.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. I hope.

The New Year has brought with it a slew of new projects. I like 2010 already.

I think the biggest news since my last missive was the tremendous earthquake in Haiti. There are two stories emanating from Haiti that deserve some "PR" thought. They are (1) Royal Caribbean's decision to continue docking in Haiti, post-quake, and (2) Israel's disproportionate response in sending aid.

It's not hard to see why Royal Caribbean is being dealt with harshly in the forum of public opinion. After all, with Haitians literally scrounging for scraps of food, RC deposits well-fed tourists to "frolic in the surf" as pointed out in this recent post.

Contrast that to Israel's impressive lightening strike of disproportionate response to the tragedy in Haiti.



As I've said often in this space, public relations is about what you do, NOT what you say. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how long the halo effects of this latest activity last.

(For an interesting LA Times post including video footage of the baby named Israel, click here.)

And here, I thought I was done...

I recently came across this post from Salon.com, mentioning the connection between the Susan G. Komen organization and Hadassah Lieberman, wife of the senator from Connecticut:

Compared with Bayh's lucre from Wellpoint and the other corporations whose boards she graces, the earnings of Hadassah Lieberman appear paltry. Yet even though she has retired, for now, from counseling the pharma and insurance industries, the devotion to public health she has long proclaimed is still tinged with hypocrisy. Upon leaving Hill & Knowlton, Hadassah joined Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world’s largest breast cancer charity, as a paid "ambassador." Again, it isn't clear what she does besides posing for photo ops in places from Brazil to Israel, but as a Komen advocate she is supposed to be trying to prevent women from losing their lives.

Not one to believe everything I read on the Internet, I found this claim to be true. Mrs. Lieberman is in Israel right now "for a series of meetings with government officials, grantees, NGOs, partners, advocates and survivors to review Susan G. Komen for the Cure-funded work in Israel and to begin plans for future events highlighting breast cancer, tobacco control and health diplomacy."

That should make everything better.

It's not just Komen

So, I've set up a Google Alert for "Komen Israel" just to see who's saying what. Lots of bloggers - Jewish and otherwise - have picked up on the story of Egypt's blatant racism and Komen's tepid response.

Here's an interesting post from Political Mavens.

Who knew anti-Semitism was so en vogue and some great Americans are, at best, turning a blind eye?

Komen responds. Again.

I received the following additional response from the Komen PR department:

Thank you for contacting Susan G. Komen for the Cure. We have new information from our founder, Nancy Goodman Brinker, on this situation.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure Pleased to Announce Egyptian Events to Welcome All Advocates, Including those from Israel

Statement from Nancy Goodman Brinker, Founder, Susan G. Komen for the Cure

Breast cancer advocates from the United States and across the Middle East are meeting in Egypt from October 21-27 for breast cancer awareness events. There have been reports that some of the invited participants would not be allowed to attend these events. Susan G. Komen for the Cure has now received confirmation that all advocates, regardless of their country of origin, are invited to fully participate in events to bring breast cancer to the forefront of public discussion in the Middle East.

After we received the initial report on the situation, we launched a diplomatic effort to ensure they would be able to participate. I am pleased to report that our efforts led to confirmation that all advocates would be welcome to participate in the events.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure remains steadfast in our mission to save lives and end breast cancer forever.

Again, technically, it's a good response. Assuming you need to carefully balance many political considerations. In my opinion, it is embarrassingly weak.

This was my reply:

Thank you for the note however this is hardly helpful as (1) the conference has already started and (2) getting from Israel to Egypt isn’t the easiest thing to do at the last minute.

The statement is weak and ineffective. Saying “some of the invited participants would not be allowed to attend” is offensive to those who were shut out because of religion and/or nationality. It is weak. The organization should be making a much stronger statement along the lines of “breast cancer is blind to religion, race and nationality and any effort to deny experts and advocates the right to participate on those grounds is deplorable.”

Instead of effectively handling the situation, the Susan G. Komen organization has clearly shown the Jewish community that it supports racism and anti-Semitism. This is not a fringe-group opinion.

What the organization needs to do right away is reach out to the Jewish community and assure them that (1) it deplores the actions of Egyptian officials, (2) it regrets not taking a stronger and more effective stand, and (3) it will ensure this does not happen again and, if it does, the Komen name and participation will be immediately pulled from any such event.

Thank you.

It will be interesting to see if they get around to doing the right thing.

Diplomatic Learnings of Borat for Make Benefit Public Relations of Glorious Nation

There's an old joke about the US president (the era doesn't matter), Russian president and Israeli prime minister who are all sitting around talking shop.

The Russian says, "I have the hardest job as I am responsible for almost 200 million people, most of whom do not have enough food on their tables."

"That's nothing," says the American. "I have the hardest job leading a country of 300 million and the entire free world."

"You both have it easy," says the Israeli PM. "I'm the leader 7,000,000 presidents, all of whom know better than me!"

Today, an Israeli Foreign Ministry official likened Israel's public relations plight to that of Kazakhstan as a result of the fictional Borat. (You can read articles here and here.)

The official, who is responsible for the Brand Israel project, laments the false perception many have of Israelis.

The challenge of perception and public relations is finally coming to light within the higher echelons of Israeli government. I maintain, however, that almost all efforts are destined to fail unless certain basic truths are taken to heart. Here are three:

1. Speak with one voice.
2. Elect - and stand behind - a strong leader.
3. Recognize that not everyone needs to be convinced and "converted."