PA AMMAN'S WEF COVERAGE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003838

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO ECON OVIP JO
SUBJECT: PA AMMAN'S WEF COVERAGE



1. Summary: The June 21-23 Extraordinary Meeting of the
World Economic Forum at the Dead Sea provided the USG an
unprecedented opportunity to highlight for much of the
world's media -- and, in particular, the usually
ultra-critical Arab satellite TV channels -- positive
messages and new foreign policy intiatives toward the nations
of the Middle East. The main achievement was getting out our
MEFTA and MEPI messages as well as U.S. dedication to the
Road Map through the Arab satellites and regional as well as
local print media. This was in vivid contrast to the
skeptical or outright accusatory prism through which Arab
media often portray U.S. policies towards the region. U.S.
delegates to the Forum put on a media blitz, ensuring the
fullest possible coverage of U.S. initiatives, and marking a
major step forward in laying out both the broad vision as
well as the details of the Administration's Middle East
policy. PA Amman thanks all delegation members and their
staffs for their willingness to cooperate in these
activities, appearing willingly under the lights for multiple
television, radio, print and electronic media sessions
throughout the conference. PA Amman also thanks NEA/PD and
IIP for their excellent support by providing critical TDY
personnel, without which our efforts could not have been
carried out. End summary.

--------------
Deeds and Words
--------------


2. The WEF Dead Sea meeting was a major media event. With
over 400 journalists accredited to cover the conference, it
offered the USG an unprecedented platform from which to
highlight a number of positive U.S. initiatives towards the
Middle East. Building a strong and coherent message of hope
and opportunity around the President's proposal of a U.S. -
Middle East Free Trade Area and his personal commitment to
implementation of the Roadmap, U.S. proposals dominated
discussion at the Forum, and the media reporting that
followed. The strongest message of all, however, was sent by
the sheer size and seniority of the U.S. delegation. The
image of Secretary Powell, USTR Zoellick, Ambassador Bremer,
USAID Administrator Natsios, U/S Larson, A/S Burns, DAS
Cheney, senior House and Senate delegations and many other
senior USG officials participating in sessions and appearing
before the media conveyed a message of confidence in a new,
integrated U.S. approach to this troubled region which
addresses not only its conflicts but the desire for
prosperity, freedom and hope. The decision to embrace this
Forum and to use it as an opportunity to convey this
integrated U.S. approach made for a powerful message.


3. Over a week prior to the conference, NEA/PD forwarded to
PA Amman a memo laying out a pre-conference press plan of
speeches, DVC's and on-the-record briefings that would set
the stage for the U.S. messages to be delivered at the
conference. These included U/S Larson's appearance at the
Foreign Press Center and the IIP-drafted op-ed for
Ambassadors that Amman placed locally on June 21. These
efforts provided post a basis upon which to prepare a media
strategy for the period covering the Forum. Without
confirmation of availability or willingness of Department
principals to engage media at the conference, PA Amman
developed a press plan that sought to generate wide exposure
and understanding of USG initiatives at the WEF. These
included the MEFTA, but also MEPI, USAID activities in the
region, and Iraq rebuilding efforts. Our proposals were
forwarded to the Secretary's party en route to the conference
and we received encouragement to engage as many USG delegates
as possible in support of our media strategy.

--------------
So Many Messages, So Many Messengers
--------------


4. When we began contacting principals with ideas for media
appearances, we found near-universal willingness to engage.
With so many media outlets represented at the Forum, in
particular among the Arab media, our challenge became not
convincing USG officials to appear before media, but how to
choose the appropriate outlets to maximize the impact of
their time. And as the conference got underway and USG
proposals came to dominate the agenda, more and more media
requests came in. While we do not have a clear baseline from
which to measure, we believe that more USG officials engaged
more Arab media in this 3-day period than may have ever been
done before. In addition to plenary addresses and press
conferences by US delegates to the Forum -- each of which was
covered extensively by regional and international media, PA
Amman organized the following media appearances:

-- Secretary Powell one-on-one interviews with Al Jazeera,
Arabiya and Jordan Television Satellite networks;

-- USTR Zoellick one-on-one interviews with Al Jazeera,Abu
Dhabi TV, CNBC and Bloomberg News; Radio Interview with Radio
Sawa; Roundtable with Arab and International Print Media;

-- Ambassador Bremer briefed the US traveling press corps and
offered exclusive comments to his traveling Iraqi press corps
following a bilateral meeting with UNSYG Annan;

-- USAID Administrator Natsios briefed Arab Print Media;

-- U/S Larson gave an open press availability to all media
reps on the first night of the Forum to preview USG
initiatives and objectives; he then did Abu Dhabi TV and BBC
Radio;

-- A/S Burns appeared on Al Jazeera and sat for two
one-on-one interviews with Arab print media outlets.

-- DAS Cheney briefed 12 Arab print journalists on MEPI and
US economic policy in the region.

-- Ambassador Gnehm appeared on Jordan TV before the
conference and on Jordan Radio from the Dead Sea during it.
We also placed the IIP-drafted op-ed under his name in local
Arabic dailies on the first day of the Forum and provided a
separate op-ed under his name to a special-edition business
magazine produced locally for the conference.


5. We will be sending a separate cable detailing coverage in
the Jordanian press resulting from the above efforts.

--------------
TDY Support Critical
--------------


6. Post would like to thank NEA/PD and IIP for their advance
planning in support of the conference, as well as for
providing critical TDY support, without which we could not
have provided the coverage needed to take advantage of this
unique opportunity. In particular, Jessica Davies did an
excellent job in coordinating media appearances for US
delegation members. We also worked closely with the two IIP
Wireless File writer/editors sent to cover the event, Berta
Gomez and Philip Kurata, and commend their hard work in
covering so many different aspects of the Forum.
GNEHM