Without much fanfare, the Global War on Terror has ended. The new name for these military interventions is the Overseas Contingency Operation. Press Q&A. Some Republican representatives discuss. (SPOILER: They are not pleased.) Military blogs discuss. Similarly, the War on Drugs also looks to be on the way out, though no new name for the project has been announced at this time.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim on May 14, 2009 - 53 comments

Al Hurra television, the U.S. government's $63 million-a-year effort at public diplomacy broadcasting in the Middle East, is run by executives and officials who cannot speak Arabic, according to a senior official who oversees the program. That might explain why critics say the service has recently been caught broadcasting terrorist messages, ... from their About US page: Alhurra is operated by non-profit corporation “The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc.” (MBN). MBN is financed by the American people through the U.S Congress. US Govt. Accountability Office abstract about other MBN problems here.
posted by amberglow on May 22, 2007 - 44 comments

It's never too late to declare your support for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
posted by digaman on Aug 23, 2005 - 49 comments

Though you won’t hear about them , there are dozens of Pentagon P.R. officers embedded with reporters in Iraq.
posted by cornbread on Apr 2, 2003 - 21 comments

The Information War: "Every few minutes, another burst of satellite imagery and Internet information impacts among an interactive global audience. Ambushed by info, U.S. military commanders confident in their overwhelming firepower are increasingly expressing concern that the 'velocity of information' is spinning out of their control." [more inside]
posted by poopy on Mar 30, 2003 - 20 comments

Operation Pretentious Platitude One of the awful aspects of "Operation Iraqi Freedom" is having to listen to this name used without irony.

"It all comes down to branding" ... "Don't waste a public relations opportunity -- remember that the operation name is the first bullet in the war of images." "Churchill ... warned specifically against using words that imply an "overconfident sentiment." He knew as well as anyone how history delights in throwing unforeseen ironies our way." Here's a list of mostly recent real names.

But how about "Operation Rouge-wearing Caliph"? "Operation Evangelical Fatwa"? "Operation Expect No Mercy From Our Privet Bush"? "Operation Overpriced Cannon"? "Operation Irate Economy"? "Operation International-law-ignoring Manticore"?. Try for yourself. (Here's how it's done).
posted by lathrop on Mar 22, 2003 - 34 comments

How do you put a good face on war crimes? You think ahead and hire a PR agency.
posted by feckless on Mar 5, 2002 - 6 comments