VABALOG

Kuidas valitud blogijad USA rahandusministeeriumit külastasid

USA suurus tähendab, et majandusteemadel blogijate seas on hulgaliselt kitsamate valdkondade spetsialiste, kes ei häbene enda teadlikkuse tõttu kommenteerimast isegi kõige tehnilisemaid teemasid ja nüansse. Loomulikult on Rahandusministeerium ametnikud enda häälekatest (ja informeeritud) kriitikutest teadlikud ning otsustasid hiljuti ühe valitud grupiga avalike suhete edendamise raames kohtuda. Kohtumise eesmärgiks oli selgitada ministeeriumi töötajate nägemust ja seisukohti ning isegi mõnedele küsimustele vastata.

Enamus kohtumisel osalenutest on tänaseks jõudnud ka enda muljed kirja panna. Minu jaoks olid kõige huvitavamad Naked Capitalism, Accrued Interest ja Interfluidity postitused, kuid neist viimane väärib eraldi tsiteerimist, sest toob välja ka hulgaliselt mõjutamisvõtteid, mida kogenud meediaga suhtlejad ei häbenenud ka blogivatel külalistel proovimast:

I thought there were certain tricks, rhetorical techniques employed, that I enjoyed. In response to a several difficult questions, one official enthused that what the interlocutor had brought up was an important concern, something he really cared about, but then quickly went on to assert that, in his judgment, it was unlikely to be the pivotal or most challenging problem. I thought this a very effective trick to sweep an issue aside, a kind of jujitsu by which the official would render very sharp comments harmless by moving with rather than fighting against the questioner. After this move, the only possible disagreement is a judgment call about which of many problems is most pressing, and whose judgment would be better than that of a senior official immersed daily in the practicalities of policy? Twice Treasury officials commented on how uncommon a group we were, how we asked particularly pointed questions or were unusually bright. To borrow a cliché, I’ll bet they say that to all the groups. One official made use of an expletive early in his discussion, which had the effect of making us feel like insiders, like this was not the sort of canned, guarded conversation one might see on CNN. The same official was quick to address us by first name when responding to questions. That wasn’t hard, since our names were in front of us, written on placards in large letters. But it was still effective. Being addressed so familiarly makes you feel important, like you are someone powerful people deem worth their while to know. Obviously, the reality distortion field wears off when you leave, once you think it over. But these guys are pretty good at what they do.

See on vaid üks viimaseid lõike pikemast postitusest, kus tuleb juttu ka sellest, miks postituse autor talle pakutud küpsistest kategooriliselt keeldus vaatamata sellele, et küpsised talle VÄGA meeldivad.

Tagged with: acrued interest, interfluidity, naked capitalism, rahandusministeerium

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