From: "Coates, Nic C" <Nicholas.Coates-AT-team.telstra.com>
Subject: Media training has cops in a spin    
Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2001 13:08:26 +1100


News
Last Updated November 29, 2001 07:44 AM AEST    
   
     
Media training has cops in a spin    
Source: AAP 
     
   
Hundreds of NSW police officers will be trained to spin the government line
when speaking to media, state parliament was told.

A document obtained by the opposition revealed that the government sought
tenders for consultants to media-train 760 officers across the service.

The documents say executives and commanders should learn to "understand the
impact of the issue on the government of the day" and "understand the
relationship between public information needs and political pressures on
operations".
 
Sixteen months out from the next state election, law and order is already
dominating the state political scene, with new Police Minister Michael Costa
copping a barrage of questions in parliament.

Mr Costa said training police in media skills was not new and dated back to
previous coalition governments.

He said the coalition in the past had intended hiring the former host of the
ABC's Mastermind, Huw Evans, to train officers.

But opposition leader Kerry Chikarovski said it was extraordinary that the
government would spend taxpayer dollars on police media training when other
areas within the service were starved of funds.

"What they're doing is they're actually teaching the police how to put on
their government spin, so the police do their bit to make sure this
government looks good on law and order," Mrs Chikarovski told reporters.

"It looks to be a five-year contract that's going to cost taxpayers hundreds
of thousands of dollars."

She said she was appalled at the government's priorities.

"Police absolutely have a right to report to the media but they shouldn't be
concerned about protecting the government's butt."

Mr Costa said it was vital to community safety that police be able to
communicate effectively.

"It is vital that police are able to communicate clearly and concisely in
the interests of public safety," he said.

"This would include public appeals for assistance and information and
warnings."

In parliament, Premier Bob Carr shrugged off Mrs Chikarovski's question,
accusing the coalition of spending $1 million over two years on consultancy
fees to sell its state budget when it was in office.

Tenders for the two-year media training contract, with an optional further
three years, close on December 12.
    
        
   Brought to you by ..... İAAP 2001