We’re starting the New Year off right with lots of examples! There are BIMBOs from Heat player Dwyane Wade, Ethan Roeder from the Obama campaign, Italian Prime Minister Monti and departing SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro. Examples from the Wrong Thing to Say examples from a Utah company that sales bulletproof products and body armor, and a return appearance of Georgia Congressman Hank Johnson. A Somalia-based terrorist group reminds us of the times when it assured its followers via Twitter that a high-profile American who joined the group was out-of-line with his criticism of its leadership. My, how the world has changed.
THE WINNING BIMBO
“We just want the public to understand that we’re not perverts,” said TSA screener and local union official Ricky McCoy. (The article reported on a press conference by TSA John Pistole about public reaction to a recently introduced new pat down policy. Note that the “not perverts” phrase also made the headline. TSA chief John Pistole’s quote was very good: "We are exploring again ways that they might be less invasive and yet with the same outcomes in terms of detection, but that is really the challenge that we have and that dynamic tension between security and privacy and reasonable people can disagree as to exactly where that blend is as it relates to you as a passenger." Unfortunately, the reasonable quote was crowded out by the negative.)
Associated Press, “‘We’re not Perverts:’ TSA Workers Push Back,” Nov. 4, 2012
THE RUNNERS-UP
“I’m far from being a dirty player,” Miami Heat player Dwyane Wade tweeted after being suspended for kicking Charlotte Bobcat Ramon Sessions in the groin. (This is yet another reminder of why you should not repeat and deny a negative. Again, the phrase made the headline.)
USA Today, “Dwyane Wade: ‘I’m far from being a dirty player,’” Dec. 28, 2012
It’s “not looking like a train wreck,” said John Stevens, creator of “Buckwild,” the show that mimics “The Jersey Shore” in West Virginia. Stevens was trying to stave off the wrath of one of the state’s senators, Joe Manchin III, who was not pleased to learn that the reality TV show would feature young people “cavorting, partying, swearing, and generally being as ‘wild’ as they can.”
Today, “Senator urges MTV to pull the plug on ‘Buckwild’ series, calling it a ‘travesty,’” Dec. 10, 2012
“I am not big brother,” wrote Ethan Roeder, director of Obama for America’s data operation. (Mr. Roeder began with the self-deprecating sentence, “Reading what others muse about my profession is the opposite of my middle school experience: people with only superficial information about me make a bunch of assumptions to fill in what’s missing and decide that I’m an all knowing super genius.” Mr. Roeder was responding to reports that the Obama administration had collected vast realms of secret data about voters, insisting “campaigns don’t know anything more about your online behavior than any retailer, news outlet or savvy blogger.”
Washington Post, “Obama data director: ‘I am not Big Brother,’” Dec. 6, 2012
Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti insisted that investors “shouldn’t fear any decision making void,” between his expected imminent resignation and elections in 2013. (Mr. Monti had other excellent quotes about his expectations that voters would choose “a highly responsible, EU-oriented government,” but the negative quote crowded out the good and drove the headline.)
Bloomberg, “Monti Says Market Shouldn’t Fear Political Turmoil in Italy,” Dec. 10, 2012
“My goal wasn’t to be a martyr,” SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said in October when Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner used his new powers under Dodd Frank to take up the issue of new rules for money market funds. (Schapiro was unable to muster a majority on the Commission and the proposal to drop the practice of letting investors buy and sell shares for a fixed one dollar value was fiercely opposed by businesses. It’s interesting that the quote was reprised two months later. Outgoing chairman Schapiro noted of her tenure, “It was harder than I thought it was going to be.”)
Bloomberg Businessweek, “Mary Schapiro’s Unfinished Business,” Dec. 3, 2012
WRONG THING TO SAY
“We do not want to sensationalize this any more than it already is,” said Derek Williams, director of sales and marketing for Amendment II, about the company’s bulletproof backpacks for small children. (Amendment II has seen demand for its products soar following the shooting in Connecticut. The company missed a great opportunity to get its message in the articles. Instead, they said things like “We’re being painted as warmongers here,” and “they’re calling us murderous, hateful pieces of garbage.”)
FoxNews.com, “Sales of bulletproof backpacks, kids’ body armor by Utah company soar 500 percent following Connecticut shootings,” Dec. 19, 2012
Georgia Rep. Hank Johnson who became an Internet star when he pondered whether the island of Guam might “capsize” if the U.S. posted too many service personnel there, rambled onto the national stage again with a disorganized floor speech for using what he called “the m-word,” with the letter “M” a short hand for “midget.” (Apparently the congressman tackled the labor dispute in Michigan, asking “What happens when you put a giant and midget into a cage?” and continued repeating the word “midget.” Johnson also compared the word “midget” to the “n-word.”)
Daily Caller, “Democratic congressman apologizes for using the ‘m word’ in rambling floor speech about ‘unusually small people.’” Dec. 13, 2012
SIGN OF THE TIMES
al-Shabaab, an al Qaeda-allied, Somalia-based terror group, took to Twitter to denounce the Alabama-born rapper and jihadist Omar Hammami, also known as Abu Mansur al-Amriki. It seems as if Hammami has a bit too much American sense of entitlement and has been criticizing al Qaeda leadership publicly. (The FBI and State Department refer to Hammami as a “leader” of al-Shebaab, which the group tried to rebut by writing “contrary to the portrait of the grand strategist, recruiter and fund raiser portrayed by the Western media, Abu Mansur al-Amriki does not hold any position of authority.” It seems that the diversity movement has also reached extremist Muslim groups because they felt compelled to add, “The Jihadi theatre nevertheless accommodates people of all sorts.” This is the first time we’ve seen the word “petulant” in a headline.)
ABC News, “Terror Group Gives ‘Petulant’ US Recruit a Timeout,” Dec. 18, 2012
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