WASHINGTON, DC: While the World Trade Organization’s recent meeting in Seattle may have seemed from afar to be the embodiment of chaos, the guerrilla PR unleashed by protest groups was in reality meticulously planned.
WASHINGTON, DC: While the World Trade Organization’s recent meeting
in Seattle may have seemed from afar to be the embodiment of chaos, the
guerrilla PR unleashed by protest groups was in reality meticulously
planned.
Scott Nova, director of the Citizens Trade Campaign, said that
mobilization efforts started well before the actual location of the
conference was announced. The day Seattle was named, member groups of
CTC’s coalition were making hotel reservations.
’Because of this, we were able to put a progressive agenda for trade on
the political map in a way that has never happened before,’ said
Nova.
The CTC coalition included environmentalists, labor supporters, animal
rights activists and religious organizations - not exactly an alliance
that could have been thrown together overnight. Nova disputed labeling
the activities as ’guerrilla PR,’ describing them instead as ’grassroots
democracy.’
But controlling the message proved to be difficult with so many
organizations involved. While Nova took pains to disassociate the
coalition from the violence - he argued that this was the work of
anarchists, not serious protesters - he is disappointed that the news
media emphasized the riots.
In the wake of the protests - which all but buried mentions of the WTO’s
Seattle agenda - activists like the CTC now face the challenge of
maintaining the high level of interest.
Nova believes the coalition mobilized against the WTO will be
resurrected, hopefully with added involvement from conservatives
concerned with national security and the religious persecution of
missionaries and worshippers.
- Editorial, p10
- Weekly Web Watch, p14.
