How To Frame The Debate or Tips and Tricks from Karl Rove

2. How To Frame The DebateorTips and Tricks from Karl Rove RENEW Energy Policy Summit Mick Sagrillo January 13, 2011 ©2011 Mick Sagrillo

3. Questions to explore • What strategies do NIMBYs use to fight projects? • Why does the media get it wrong? • How can we counter this?

4. “ If you don’t understand what is being done to you, you cannot prevail.” “If you have to defend yourself, you lose” Therefore “Attack, attack, attack!” And why Karl Rove?

5. Wind Opposition Strategies • Goal  regulatory paralysis • How? • Portray everything as a public health issue • Irrefutable ? • Paint wind as dangerous so it’s restricted or prohibited

6. Specific strategies • Misinformation • Obfuscation • Delay • Frame your opponent • Control the language • Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo • Create doubt • Manipulate the media

7. Misinformation and Obfuscation • Submit “expert opinions” to counter lack of evidence • “Wind is dangerous” • Create the appearance of scientific uncertainly • Muddle the issue • Digress and side track • Create conflict in the press • Create doubt in the minds of the decision makers (Score!)

8. Mission statement ? • “Doubt is our product since it is the best means of competing with the body of fact that exists in the mind of the general public. It is also the means of establishing a controversy.” -Brown and Williams Tobacco Company memo from the 1960’s

9. When all else fails, make things up

10. Make things up “Ice Throws” “Fall zone” “Industrial” “Dangerous” “Epilepsy” Create doubt

11. Make things up “Ice Throws” “Fall zone” “Industrial” “Dangerous” “Epilepsy” Create doubt They don’t have to prove anything—they just have to raise the question. The question becomes an accusation that you must defend against

12. Newt Gingrich • 1996 GOPAC memo: “Language: A Key Mechanism of Control” • “Optimistic positive governing words and phrases help describe your vision for the future of your community, and… • “Contrasting words help you clearly define the policies and record of your opponent.” • “Remember that creating a (divisive) difference helps you.”

13. Frank Luntz “It’s not what you say, … it’s what people hear.”

14. This is not an accident! “He or she who controls the language controls the debate” • Karl Rove • Newt Gingrich • Frank Luntz

15. NIMBY Echo Chamber • Circular quoting • Repeat repeatedly to “burn it in” • “Industrial” • “Noisy” • “Bird kills” • “Ice throw” • “Blade throw” • “Fall zone” • “Dangerous” • Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo

16. NIMBY Echo Chamber Circular quoting Repeat repeatedly to “burn it in” “Industrial” “Noisy” “Bird kills” “Ice throw” “Blade throw” “Fall zone” “Dangerous” Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo

17. Manipulate the media • The media abhors a vacuum • The lifeblood of the media is controversy • It “sells” • “Fair and Balanced” • Most in today’s media cannot / do not differentiate between fact and opinion

18. Create conflict in the media

19. Wind Opposition Strategies Misinformation Obfuscation Delay Frame your opponent Control the language Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo Create doubt Manipulate the media

20. What to do?

21. “Framing the debate” Accusations Controlling the language intentionally puts your “opponent” on the defensive

22. Frame Your Opponent • “Frame”—what the mind conjures up • Don’t Think of An Elephant • Perception management

23. Frame the language to control the discussion “fall zone” “safety setback” “ice throw” “noise”

24. These terms elicit a visceral response Vivid language = Vivid images “fall zone” “safety setback” “ice throw” “noise”

25. Reframethe language to gain control of the discussion: “fall zone” “safety setback” “ice throw” “noise” “setback”“work zone” “ice shedding” “sound”

26. How differently… It sounds It’s interpreted How you react What the message is Fall zone Setback Now listen:

27. How differently… It sounds It’s interpreted How you react What the message is Fall zone Setback Ice throw  Ice shedding Now listen:

28. Lessons • If you use their words, you reinforce their accusation • If you use their words, you automatically have to defend your position

29. What to do with misinformation? • Refute immediately! • Never let accusations go unchallenged • Zoner: Any unfounded accusation left uncontested “…must be true.”

30. Remind them • Opinions are not evidence • “Findings of fact supported by a preponderance of evidence in the record” • Opinions are not a legal basis for restriction • Otherwise, “arbitrary and capricious” • Challenge their credibility!

31. Reframe Your Opponent • “I’m not anti wind, but….” • Call a spade a spade—carefully: • Misrepresenting the facts • Unfounded conjecture • Hysteria • Exaggeration • Intentional fear mongering • Malcontent

32. Hard Lessons • Never, ever, underestimate the strength of the opposition • No one will do it for us • We will continuously battle wild allegations by NIMBYs and malcontents, unless….

33. …Unless wechange the dialogue And it’s not just NIMBYs

34. What’s wrong with these messages?

35. “Clean coal”

36. “Clean coal”

37. On wind farm siting: • "I will fight government policies that further infringe on the rights of property owners." • Scott Walker in a campaign letter last summer. • The Wisconsin Realtors Association says that “wind projects are interfering with private property rights of homeowners who live near turbines.”

38. On wind farm siting: • "We are hopeful that moving forward we'll be able to find a reasonable compromise that protects property rights.” • Cullen Werwie, Governor's Walker’s spokesman

39. On wind farm siting: • "We are hopeful that moving forward we'll be able to find a reasonable compromise that protects property rights.” • Cullen Werwie, Governor's Walker’s spokesman

40. How will you respond? • “A new wind farm is complete in Columbia County and it will soon be killing more birds than a Sarah Palin Thanksgiving photo op.” • “Or, for you heavy metal fans, more mosquito-eating bats than Ozzy Osbourne ever killed.”

41. “To be fair, We Energies did not build the wind farm because it hates birds, bats or ratepayers.” “Nor did it build the wind farm because the company wanted to build a giant ice ball thrower.”

42. “If renewable energy were cost competitive, power companies and energy consumers would not need a mandate to prefer renewable energy sources over coal, oil and natural gas.”

43. “Ironically, according to one environmentalist group, Clean Wisconsin, the windmill farm may not even further the goal of the renewable energy mandate, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, because We Energies will still be reliant upon the coal-burning power plants for primary electrical generation.” • “Because wind is not a reliable source of energy here.”

44. Vivid language = vivid images • Killing birds • And bats • Giant ice ball thrower • If…cost competitive • A mandate • Not a reliable source

45. Eyes wide open ! Let’s not allow this happen any more.

47. New tactic • Video camera in front of a person rambling on and on w/ the subtitle “victim” under—you cannot question or refute • Pay attention to language used

48. Compared to what? Coal’s cost does not reflect its hidden subsidies. • Cost can be measured in many ways • Cost vs value • Energy markets are political constructs • How do you call something a market when there is only one seller? • Value system masquerading as economics or bookkeeping

49. Coal is cheap and reliable • Subsidies distort the marketplace • RE is not cost effective • Oversupply of electricity • Due to EPA regs, WPS has to lay off some employees