Policy by press release
Policy by press release refers to the act of attempting to influence
Cold War
Perhaps the most common use of the term refers to an infamous period during the
The first and most costly example of this behavior was the mythical "bomber gap." After seeing the latest Soviet jet-powered bomber designs in 1955, a clamor broke out in Washington about the Soviets developing a lead in deploying strategic bombers, with estimates that hundreds would be available shortly. The result was a massive expansion of the US building program, which led to the eventual introduction of about 2,500 jet bombers. Although it was not revealed at the time, US intelligence services had actually made real estimates of the size of the Soviet fleet as early as 1956, placing it at around 20 aircraft.[1]
Nevertheless, the tactic of claiming the gap existed and then brushing aside any criticism as being "weak on defense," was so successful it led to a wave of similar claims.
Another famous case was a claim that suggested the Soviets were working on a global-range
In fact, the entire article was a hoax; third parties later revealed that the aircraft appearing in the pictures was the entirely-conventional
Another apparent case of policy by press release was the famous
Contemporary use
The term is now more commonly used, especially in the US, to refer to
Likewise, the implication that Iraq was involved in the
A related term, public health by press release, is occasionally used ironically to imply official pronouncements or media campaigns belie inadequate effort or funding, but the term appeared in an article warning against a pitfall from the opposite direction (potential misassessment of limited clinical studies by press and policymakers).[10]
References
- ^ Heppenheimer, T. A. (1998). The Space Shuttle Decision. NASA. p. 193.
- ^ "Soviets Flight Testing Nuclear Bomber", Aviation Week, 1 December 1958, p. 27.
- ^ Soviet Nuclear Plane Possibility Conceded, Ford Eastman, Aviation Week, 19 January 1959, p. 29.
- ^ Guy Norris, "False Starts For Aviation’s ‘Atomic Age’", Aviation Week, 14 October 2014
- ^ Is this the real Flying Saucer?, Look, Volume 19, 14 June 1955
- ^ Governor to push global warming fight - Bold policy gambits expected in bid to lower greenhouse gases, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 February 2006
- ^ Why the U.S. Should Withdraw from the Montreal Protocol Archived 2010-07-18 at the Wayback Machine, The National Center for Public Policy Research, February 1997
- ^ "MSN | Outlook, Office, Skype, Bing, Breaking News, and Latest Videos". www.msn.com. Archived from the original on 2019-01-31. Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- ^ "CNN.com - Transcripts". transcripts.cnn.com. Retrieved 2019-08-22.
- ^ "The perils of public health by press release," Lancet, 2004 Sep 18;364:1037-1038