Think your PR task is tough? Just try representing the American-Arab Anti-Defamation Committee in the emotionally charged, highly complex political and social environment of
post-9/11 America. It keeps Hussein Ibish, communications director, on duty at all hours (see "A Day in the Life"), and he wasn't even trained for this gig.
With no PR background - he had a doctorate in comparative literature and plenty of experience debating the issues that occupied the media - Ibish became the ADC's public point
man on the Arab-American community four years ago and heads up a four-person communications team.
In the current climate, hostility toward Arab-Americans can at times go unchecked, and Ibish has found that sensitivity and nuance are his best tools for communicating with the
media and the public at large. As an American raised in the Arab world, Ibish's most important PR skill has been an ability to straddle the two cultures, instilled in him
throughout his life as a dual citizen of the United States and Lebanon. PR NEWS spoke with Ibish recently to find out how his role has changed and how he has adjusted his
messaging to answer the demands of a post Sept. 11 climate.
PRN: Almost a year after the attacks, is there anything you would have done differently in handling PR in this last year?
Ibish: I don't think so. I wish we had had more capacity and staff. But I think that under the circumstances we have balanced the need to put a positive face on the Arab-
American community politically with the need to maintain an advocacy for our positions, domestically and internationally under very difficult circumstances. I think the crucial
moments were in the first couple of weeks after the attacks, and I don't think we made any missteps. We were up front in condemning the attack. We were very early to agree that
this probably was the work of Bin Laden. We did not hold back in any way from condemning this. We did not oppose military action per se in response, which I think was a mistake
made by some organizations. We did not fail to institute a fund for the victims of Sept. 11 attacks. We did not fail to participate in the national mourning process.
So I think that looking back on what we needed to do, we did those things, and I don't think we made any major mistakes.
PRN: How did the post-Sept. 11 environment change the way the U.S. press deals with you?
Ibish: First of all, there is more interest in our issues, and that is not necessarily a good thing, because a lot of the interest has been critical and hostile - but not
always. Secondly, it has become more difficult because the general climate of negativity about Arabs and Arab culture has had its effect on the political discourse in the
mainstream media. You see a [tendency] in the news media, especially in commentary, to be hostile and even abusive towards Arabs and Islam in a way that is not allowed for other
ethnic and religious groups.
PRN: In that kind of environment, what do you do to ensure your messages are presented in a fair, balanced manner in the media?
Ibish: Coming up with a defined strategy that is coherent is very tricky when your resources are as limited as ours are and where the entire discourse is in flux. What we have
to try to do at this point is to monitor the situation as much as possible and move towards a comprehensive analysis.
The task in the coming six to nine months is to present a comprehensive survey of what has happened in mainstream discourse and an analysis that is going to have a decisive
effect. We are in the process of finishing a report which focuses mainly on hate crimes and other forms of discrimination in the post-Sept. 11 environment. We will be releasing it
probably to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the attack. We are already planning on a study that focuses on media bias and defamation.
PRN: But you've also had to have a new sensitivity when talking to the American public, haven't you?
Ibish: It is important for us to be sensitive to the fears, the concerns, the normal human reactions of our fellow Americans to this atrocity. We cannot deny that it was
conducted by a group of people who were all Arabs and were purporting to act in the name of the Arab people and the Islamic faith.
It requires taking nuanced positions. Take the issue of racial profiling. We cannot take the position that the ACLU has taken that under no circumstances can racial profiling
ever be acceptable, period. We have to take a more nuanced position saying that, 'Yes, we agree that racial profiling is totally unacceptable but we understand the fears. [Race]
might be used in some more detailed profiles but not as a major feature.' That's a more nuanced position than we would have adopted before.
You cannot be as categorical on some of these issues from a political standpoint, because not only do we have to promote our community's civil rights and political interest, we
have to protect the reputation of the community which is being maligned by its detractors as a fifth column. We have to be sensitive to that.
PRN: Let's talk about tactics. Which media channels have you relied upon since Sept. 11 to ensure that you are adequately communicating with all your stakeholders.
Ibish: Direct email to our members is absolutely vital. I try to have an op-ed in one of the major papers each month if I can. One is always pleased to speak to cable TV
programs because of the fact that a lot of people who are involved in the political process actually watch these shows. It is a way of influencing people and increasing one's own
credibility, which is very important, part of the name of the game.
(Contact: Hussein Ibish, 202/438-7297)
A Day in the Life...
We spoke to Hussein Ibish on the day that a major Israeli air attack on a Hamas leader also killed civilians. As a result, this day was atypical, but not infrequent.
Ibish: Today I got up at 4 a.m. and wrote a press release that went through several drafts. We released it at about 8 a.m.
During the same period of time, I wrote an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times, which has been accepted. And I did two radio shows, and I am going to go in twenty minutes and do
some TV... and then I'll have some more TV.
I have also issued an action list to our members and written several letters to several newspapers on domestic issues. For more information on Ibish or the American-Arab Anti-
Defamation Committee, see http://www.adc.org.