By Arshad Mahmud

Washington, Sept 2 (bdnews24.com)—A major figure in the Obama administration has voiced deep skepticism about the government's efforts to counter extremist Islamic ideology through "strategic communication", saying that no amount of public relations will establish credibility if American behavior overseas is perceived as arrogant, uncaring or insulting.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also suggested that America must live up to its values in order to win the hearts and minds of the Muslim world.
"To put it simply, we need to worry a lot less about how to communicate our actions and much more about what our actions communicate," Adm Mullen wrote in the Joint Force Quarterly, an official military journal, on Friday.

Being the top most military officer, his views are being taken seriously by the Obama administration at a time when it has launched fresh efforts to counter militant propaganda as part of its broader strategy to defeat the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"I would argue that most strategic communication problems are not communication problems at all," he wrote. "They are policy and execution problems. Each time we fail to live up to our values or don't follow up on a promise, we look more and more like the arrogant Americans the enemy claims we are."

The admiral's views are widely shared by many in the Muslim world despite the fact that President Obama has sought to differentiate himself from George W. Bush, his predecessor, by publicly declaring that America doesn't want to lead by force but by its values.

Since assuming office in January, Obama made several gestures to the Muslim world to that effect — including through a widely praised speech in Egypt on June 4.

Still, analysts say the perception of America as an arrogant oppressor has not changed noticeably, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan, where United States forces remain engaged in war, and in Pakistan, where American-launched missiles aimed at militants from the Taliban and Al Qaeda have killed civilians.

That perception was conveyed last week to Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special envoy, by the Pakistani authorities.

According to the New York Times, Pakistani officials recently told Holbrooke that America was widely despised in their country because, they said, it was obsessed with finding and killing Osama bib Laden to avenge the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Adm Mullen expressed concern over a trend to create entirely new government and military organizations to manage a broad public relations effort to counter anti-Americanism, which he said had allowed strategic communication to become a series of bureaucracies rather than a way to combat extremist ideology.

He also challenged a popular perception that Al Qaeda operates from primitive hide-outs and still wins the propaganda war against the United States. "The problem isn't that we are bad at communicating or being outdone by men in caves," Admiral Mullen wrote. "Most of them aren't even in caves. The Taliban and Al Qaeda live largely among the people. They intimidate and control and communicate from within, not from the sidelines."

American messages to counter extremist information campaigns "lack credibility, because we haven't invested enough in building trust and relationships, and we haven't always delivered on promises," he wrote.

As a guide, Adm Mullen cited American efforts at rebuilding Europe after World War II and then containing communism as examples of successes that did not depend on opinion polls or strategic communication plans.

He also cited more recent military relief missions after natural disasters in Pakistan and elsewhere as continuing that style of successful American efforts overseas.

"That's the essence of good communication: having the right intent up front and letting our actions speak for themselves," Adm Mullen wrote. "We shouldn't care if people don't like us. That isn't the goal. The goal is credibility. And we earn that over time."
In recent weeks, members of Congress also have expressed concern about the government's programs for strategic communication, public diplomacy and public affairs.

The Senate Armed Services Committee issued a report last month noting that while "strategic communications and public diplomacy programs are important activities," it was unclear whether these efforts were integrated within the Pentagon or across other departments and agencies. "Nor is the committee able to oversee adequately the funding for the multitude of programs," the Senate report stated.

Adm Mullen did not single out specific government communications programs for criticism, but wrote that "there has been a certain arrogance to our 'strat comm' efforts." He wrote that "good communications runs both ways."

"It's not about telling our story," he stated. "We must also be better listeners."

The Muslim community "is a subtle world we don't fully — and don't always attempt to — understand," he wrote. "Only through a shared appreciation of the people's culture, needs and hopes for the future can we hope ourselves to supplant the extremist narrative."

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