In case you missed it, a foreign PR firm, APCO, is claiming that the Malaysian government has enlisted its help “to assist in evaluating its capabilities to communicate through new media”.
It is opening a brand new office in Malaysia (see here).
APCO says its clients value its “ability to help them navigate the complex and often converging worlds of business and finance; media, public opinion and society; and government and public policy. APCO helps clients anticipate what’s next and smartly manage reputational, communication and business opportunities and challenges that affect their organizations, products, services or brands”.
Cut away all that jargon and it looks like a PR company, sounds like a PR company… and by golly, it could even be a PR company. It sure has its work cut out for it as the government stumbles from one crisis to another.
So perhaps we can expect more public relations propaganda over the Internet and other new media.
But there are some things that could be beyond even a PR company. In this day and age, it’s not going to be easy to “manage reputational challenges” when confronted with a more discerning public.
People can see through spin. Like they did on 8 March 2008.
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Why hire a PR firm? Just join PR, lah!
I was watching Najib taking about tolerance, corruption, inclusiveness etc on TV. I wonder what planet is he from. He is so out of sync with the ground level.
I guess he was mouthing APCO advises? But it is so weird. We have Najib and we have UMNO and they are a world apart.
Looks like APCO strategy is working. Keeping the PM above the fray?
A stink is a stink is a stink and no amount of our tax payers’s money will make things better unless BN is buried. The only sure thing is this APCO Public Relations company will be reaping good $$$$$$ from
the BOZO gomen.
i saw an advert today for myeg.com.my on cable tv in singapore. what a load of …! People in charge of promoting Malaysia’s online capabilities of a government portal told the story with an overly tartup female in a red pvc outfit with a bunch of leering men watching her every move. Who in his/her/their pea brain mind(s) approved this and who were their targetted audience? Forget about someone approving big money spent on regional primetime advert time and, most likely, an over inflated advert production cost. Malaysia can gain big PR by just removing all the decision making imbeciles….to… Read more »
I hope APCO knows a good PR company to repair the damage to their reputation when they are half-way done with BN……………
This government has nothing substantially good enough upon which to build its reputation. It now has to use our money to make us look at it in better light? Duh!
What?The gomen wants to use tax-payers money to employ a private pr company to tell the tax-payers how good they are? Looks like we are going to be double screwed.
Is it a direct contract or they are a sub sub. Sub to crony company then sub to APCO? How much money will be siphon out again….as usual?
Typical of American consultants. The strategy is mine, the execution is yours. The same idiots will be executing the strategy. Looking at the way they been shooting their feet, I believe APCO will pull out before its reputation get damaged.
Not to worry. These kweilo consultants dont know Malaysian politics. They (probably) think Bali is part of Malaysia. Indonesia want to go to war for stealing their dance.
Mr.Anil, Najib should employ more rockys lah…..their spining news will make readers puke. this puke will spray on more ppl…..UMNO votes will slowly vanish one by one……good going rocky…c`mn rocky spin, spin, spin, spin….
they will start flooding into anil’s web soon! hoho
Why waste taxpayers’ money hiring spin doctors? BN is beyond repair. The rot started with the senior coalition partner from 28 years ago.
Yes, BN don’t need spin doctors, it needs euthanasia.
Window dressing is not going to help the corrupted government of Malaysia as perception has been ingrained in each and every malaysian’s mind.PR of course would help a little but it would not change the minds of the people.
Stop all the nonsense in this country is the only way to improve the image,otherwise prepare to look for a job in Pakatan Rakyat’s government if you have the necessary qualifications and experience.
Public relation (I dont use PR here as it might be wrongly intepreted as Pakatan Rakyat) is only good in speaches but no amount of good talk can right all the wrongs BN has committed. If they want back our support, they need to right all their wrongs through positive actions like…napping all wrong-doers be they ministers/lay-persons, no double standards in implementation of policies and actions, no control of the police as the police should protect all irrespective of their political allignment, the judicirary should be neutral and be seen in the public eyes to be neutral, no spinning in… Read more »
Hi Frens,
Is just how you view things, public relation is twisting words only. There’s 2 view…either you view Rm500 million as corruption or you view it as commission. Depend on your wits and comprehension capability. Maybe another PR is saying spending over RM500 million to get a submarine is nation building…. irregardless C4 required or not as long, end justify means. I pity Malaysians, taxpayer money wasted to do unnecessary PR job. Just tell the truth, nothing but the truth, so help me God.
How to manage their reputation when they have none of it in the first place?
Don’t worry. No amount of good PR advice can right a wrong done by the hirer. It will only work if we remain stupid to believe nice sounding rhetoric bought with good tax-payers money. The onus is on us to learn what is truth and the propaganda of good PR speak! Put it this way, I won’t be buying into APCO shares (if available) anytime soon. If they are a truly professional outfit, they will soon learn that no matter how smart their PR techniques are, there is no defending an indefensible position! To APCO, you are stepping into a… Read more »
checked out the link to apco’s website, looks like the bloggers got some… competition on their hands..