Title Selling war : a critical look at the military's PR machine / Steven J. Alvarez

Published Lincoln : Potomac Books, an imprint of the University of Nebraska Press, 2016 ©2016

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Description 1 online resource Contents Insulation -- The Coalition Provisional Authority Days -- The Iraqi Face -- The Blog of War -- David versus Goliath -- Iraqi Media Team -- Training the Iraqi Ministries -- Arab Media -- Al-Jazeera -- Fallujah -- Public Affairs -- Western Media -- Epilogue Summary "In the spring of 2004, army reservist and public affairs officer Steven J. Alvarez waited to be called up as the U.S. military stormed Baghdad and deposed Saddam Hussein. But soon after President Bush's famous PR stunt in which an aircraft carrier displayed the banner 'Mission Accomplished, ' the dynamics of the war shifted. Selling War recounts how the U.S. military lost the information war in Iraq by engaging the wrong audiences--that is, the Western media--by ignoring Iraqi citizens and the wider Arab population, and by paying mere lip service to the directive to 'Put an Iraqi face on everything.' In the absence of effective communication from the U.S. military, the information void was swiftly filled by Al Qaeda and, eventually, ISIS. As a result, efforts to create and maintain a successful, stable country were complicated and eventually frustrated. Alvarez couples his experiences as a public affairs officer in Iraq with extensive research on communication and government relations to expose why communications failed and led to the breakdown on the ground. A revealing glimpse into the inner workings of the military's PR machine, where personnel become stewards of presidential legacies and keepers of flawed policies, Selling War provides a critical review of the outdated communication strategies executed in Iraq. Alvarez's candid account demonstrates how a fundamental lack of understanding about how to wage an information war has led to the conditions we face now: the rise of ISIS and the return of U.S. forces to Iraq"-- Provided by publisher Bibliography Includes bibliographical references Notes English Print version record Subject Alvarez, Steven J. SUBJECT Alvarez, Steven J Alvarez, Steven J. fast Subject United States. Army Reserve -- Officers -- Biography SUBJECT United States. Army Reserve fast Subject Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Public opinion Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Political aspects -- United States Public relations and politics -- United States -- History -- 21st century Communication in politics -- United States -- History -- 21st century Mass media -- Political aspects -- United States -- History -- 21st century Information warfare -- Iraq -- History -- 21st century Information warfare -- United States -- History -- 21st century HISTORY -- Military -- Iraq War (2003- ) BUSINESS & ECONOMICS -- Advertising & Promotion. POLITICAL SCIENCE -- World -- Middle Eastern. Armed Forces -- Officers Armed Forces -- Public relations Communication in politics Information warfare Mass media -- Political aspects Public opinion Public relations and politics SUBJECT United States -- Armed Forces -- Public relations -- History -- 21st century Subject Iraq United States Genre/Form Biographies History Form Electronic book LC no. 2015037891 ISBN 9781612348179 1612348173 9781612348193 161234819X

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