Pentagon rapid response operation
Encyclopedia
The Pentagon rapid response operation was created in October 2006 by the United States Department of Defense
(a.k.a. The Pentagon
) to "quickly respond to news media stories critical of ... the war in Iraq, as well as other stories the Defense Department leadership doesn't like."
A Pentagon memo seen by the Associated Press
news agency said the new unit would "develop messages" for the 24-hour news cycle
and aim to "correct the record". The unit would reportedly monitor media such as weblogs
and would also employ "surrogates", or top politician
s or lobbyists who could be interviewed on TV and radio shows.
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
(a.k.a. The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
) to "quickly respond to news media stories critical of ... the war in Iraq, as well as other stories the Defense Department leadership doesn't like."
A Pentagon memo seen by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
news agency said the new unit would "develop messages" for the 24-hour news cycle
24-hour news cycle
The 24-hour news cycle arrived with the advent of television channels dedicated to news, and brought about a much faster pace of news production with increased demand for stories that can be presented as news, as opposed to the day-by-day pace of the news cycle of printed daily newspapers...
and aim to "correct the record". The unit would reportedly monitor media such as weblogs
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
and would also employ "surrogates", or top politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
s or lobbyists who could be interviewed on TV and radio shows.
See also
- Public affairs (military)Public affairs (military)Public Affairs is a term for the formal offices of the branches of the United States Department of Defense whose purpose is to deal with the media and community issues. The term is also used for numerous media relations offices that are created by the U.S. military for more specific limited purposes...
- Pentagon military analyst programPentagon military analyst programThe Pentagon military analyst program was an information operation of the U.S. Department of Defense that was launched in early 2002 by then-Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Victoria Clarke...
- U.S. Military Television NetworkU.S. Military Television NetworkU.S. Military Television Network is a planned specialty television channel distributed through satellite television and cable television companies....
External links
- David Martin On The Pentagon's 'Quick-Reaction Squad' CBS News, November 10, 2006