Frank Luntz: Gaming the American People for Israel

[Moses]

Wikipedia

...pollster and political consultant for the United States Republican Party. He is president and CEO of Luntz Research Companies, which offers "Strategic Consulting and Message Development," focus groups, surveys and other research for political and corporate campaigns. [1]

According to his LRC bio, Luntz has worked for "more than a dozen Fortune 100 companies ... from Merrill Lynch to Federal Express, Disney to American Express, from AT&T to Pfizer, from Kroger supermarkets to McDonalds to the entire soft drink and motion picture industries. ... as well as some of the largest business associations, from the Chamber of Commerce to the National Association of Manufacturers to the Business Roundtable." [2]

According to Salon.com, "In 1997, Luntz was formally reprimanded by the American Association for Public Opinion Research for his work polling on the GOP's 1994 'Contract with America' campaign document.

....Luntz's other notable work include: [4]

[/url] was leaked. It outlined how American Jewish leaders should incorporate the war in Iraq into their public comments about Israel: "Israeli Communications Priorities 2003" (pdf)

* In March 2004, Grist magazine reported on an emphatic Luntz memo (PDF) sent out in February 2004 discussing Americans' intense feelings on the subject of water: "Young and old, Democrat AND Republican, the demand for clean water is universal. More importantly, the public is willing to pay for it . An overwhelming majority of Americans - 91 percent - agree that 'if, as a country, we are willing to invest BILLIONS of dollars annually in highways and airways, we certainly should be willing to make the necessary investments in our nation's waterways. '" [The italic and bold flourishes are Luntz Research's own.]

* "Communicating the Principles of Prevention and Protection in the War on Terror", mentioned on the PBS TV show "Now with Bill Moyers", apparently prepared for the Bush Administration, full of guidance on specific words, phrases, and context to use when talking about the policy of pre-emption and the war in Iraq." This advice included: "No speech about homeland security or Iraq should begin without a reference to 9/11"

* Media Matters for America wrote a letter to MSNBC urging that Luntz not be included in the station's presidential debate coverage, due to "Luntz's partisan Republican ties and history of questionable scientific methodology." MSNBC did decide to cancel Luntz's participation, two days before the first debate. "I think they [MSNBC] buckled to political pressure," Luntz said. "They caved. . . . Why is it that Democrats are allowed to do this, but Republicans aren't?"[5]

* Journalist and blogger Joshua Micah Marshall, fact-checking a Luntz claim that "he's done no GOP work since 2001,"[6] describes regular briefings Luntz gave to the House Republican Caucus, at least as recently as mid-2004, and concludes: "Sounds like Luntz provides regular strategy briefings for Republicans and does it, not suprisingly, in part to troll for work."[7] In a subsequent post, Marshall (expanding on others' reports) wrote, "According to the California Secretary of State's website, the Bill Simon (R) for Governor campaign paid Luntz about $80,000 in 2002 and 2003. He also got paid over $25,000 in 2003 by Darrell Issa's recall committee 'RESCUE CALIFORNIA'."[8][/ul]


This article uses content from the SourceWatch article on Frank Luntz under the terms of the GFDL.
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Luntz Research Companies

His consulting firm specializes in political consulting (generally to the GOP). The most well-known document to come out of Luntz Research Companies is a guide on how to frame political issues so that they only appear positive in a conservative light.
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External Links

* SourceWatch article
* Howard Kurtz, "A Changed Political Landscape, or an Isolated Peak in the Polls?," Washington Post, October 4, 2004.
* Dante Chinni, "Why should we trust this man?," Salon.com, May 26, 2000.
* Bill Berkowitz, profile for Media Transparency, October 2004
* Examples of Luntz-isms from an interview on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Luntz"

[Moses]

... Luntz is to the buzzword "framing," as nail is to hammer. To be even more blunt; Luntz is to the neocons as Goebbels was to Hitler. Luntz is a pollster, but more than that he is in every sense of the word a Propaganda Minister. Newt Gingrich's "The Contract with America" was a Luntz creation. A few other Luntz phraseology creations include: "Partial Birth Abortion," "The Marriage Tax," and "The Death Tax." There is not a Republican wingnut in D.C. or elsewhere who—when they speak—does not have the Frank Luntz communication playbook in front of them.

One current example of the Luntz style of communicating is "Communicating the Principles of Prevention and Protection in the War on Terror." This framing is prefaced thusly: "The overwhelming amount of language in this document is intended to create a lexicon for explaining the policy of "Preemption" and the "War in Iraq."

"However, you will not find any instance in which we suggest that you use the actual word 'Preemption,' or the phrase 'The War in Iraq' to communicate your policies to the American public. To do so is to undermine your message from the start. Preemption may be the right policy, and Iraq the right place to start. But those are not the right words to use."

"Your efforts are about 'the principles of prevention and protection' in the greater 'War on Terror.''"

These "rhetorical nuances" as framed by Luntz are as effective as anything Goebbels framed for Hitler. It is first and foremost what drives the neocons' rhetoric machinery. The following five points are so familiar to us all:

www.onlinejournal.com/Commentary/022605Pitz/022605pitz.html

[Moses]

WEXNER ANALYSIS:
ISRAELI COMMUNICATION PRIORITIES 2003

OVERVIEW

The world has changed. The words, themes and messages on behalf of Israel must include and embrace the new reality of a post-Saddam world.

In the past, we have urged a lower profile for Israel out of a fear that the American people would blame Israel for what was happening in the rest of the Middle East. Now is the time to link American success in dealing with terrorism and dictators from a position of strength to Israel’s ongoing efforts to eradicate terrorism on and within its borders. In the current political environment, you have little to lose and a lot to gain by aligning with America. With all the anti-Americanism across the globe and all the protests and demonstrations, we are looking for allies
that share our commitment to security and an end to terrorism and are prepared to say so. Israelis a just such an ally.

[/b][/size][/ul]

Perceptions of Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are being almost entirely colored and often overshadowed by the continuing action in Iraq. Partisan differences still exist (the political Left remains your problem) and complaints about Israeli heavy-handedness still exist. Advocates of Israel have about two weeks to get their message in order before world attention turns to the so-called “road map” and how best to “solve” the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Developing that message is the purpose of this memo.

Author’s note: This is not a policy document. This document is strictly a communications manual. As with every memo we provide, we have used the same scientific methodology to isolate specific words, phrases, themes and messages that will resonate with at least 70% of the American audience. There will certainly be some people, particularly those on the political left, who will oppose whatever words you use, but the language that follows will help you secure support from a large majority of Americans. These recommendations are based on two “dial test” sessions in Chicago and Los Angeles conducted during the first ten days of the Iraqi war for the Wexner Foundation.

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The Luntz Research Companies & The Israel Project – April 2003