Women on the front line a nonsense

The Department of Defence has done it again: producing that old PR angle of pushing of women to serve on the front line.

The PR blitz hit the media yesterday, with the story even reaching the 7.30 Report. Neil James from the Defence Association was interviewed, and so was some obscure Liberal who served as a grunt for 10 years. They even had some grey-hair libertarian-type woman who said it didn't worry her if women wanted to be killed in battle.

The only reason Defence takes this position is because they can't get enough blokes to fill the ranks. Air Force TV ads currently focus on female mechanics, technicians and heavy-lift loadmasters.

The Army was even saying women could serve as commandos and in the SAS. Imagine the guffaws from the Regiment at the prospect.

The Brigadier in charge of 1 Brigade supports the move. Sure he does. Yes, he said the ladies can share the same risks in Afghanistan. Hmm. I wonder what would happen to GI Jane when she is captured by the Taliban?

Whatever you think about having women serving in direct combat roles, the actual clumsy approach in promoting it in in dire need of a rethink. They're still using the same PR methods employed in 2001, when I was serving in East Timor (and A Current Affair pursued it, without success).

The female reporter, who had a brother in the Army, wanted to go the the "front line" (the border with West Timor). The deal was if she could carry a standard pack up some stairs to the helicopter pad we'd take her. She never got it off the ground.

Hello. Men fight wars. Always have, always will. Perhaps Defence should focus on how to attract and retain them. Oh that's right, they have, and failed. So out comes PR plan B.

Another image problem for PR

Here we go again. Another TV sitcom portraying PR as being full of party girls, glitz and glamour.

The City, a US show, follows the dramatic life of a young PR woman in New York. Whitney Port and Olivia Palermo seem to run the public relations department, work at the fashion shows, network - and still have time to spend time each day shopping and creating drama while wearing 9 inch heels and having perfect hair.

No wonder PR has an image problem and only seems to attract females. This was the core of my PhD study (soon to be published as “The Feminisation of Public Relations - but an old web site at http://people.aapt.net.au/~net/study).

What is it that attracts TV producers to put out shows on PR, anyway? We’re up again being called spin doctors in the news media, and as being fluffy events people in the entertainment media. It’ simply a lose-lose situation.

Time for national PR campaigns (US, UK, Australia, Canada) to battle this. Maybe that means attacking the TV shows.

See more at the PR Lab

Rugby League's ham-fisted approach to PR

The National Rugby League's attempt at smoothing over its clubs' lamentable treatment of women could not have come at a worse time.

Apart from being an all-too-obvious attempt at trying to win back favour with fans and the media, the timing was ruined by yet another sex scandal: this time involving the CEO of the Cronulla club.

The NRL says it wants to attract women to the game. Well, there's a little more to it than having lunch at a pub (of all places) and saying women should be in leadership roles ... in a male sport, mind you.

The sport first has to tackle the cultural problems (notably alcohol and sex) that beset it, and many other sports codes. This is clearly not happening. Of course, it's a tall order, given that these problems come from society as a whole.