Monday, June 19, 2006
Harper to Boost Use of Emoticons
Ottawa (FN) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has found a simple solution to his tumultuous relationship with the media: use more smiley faces.
The grim PM has frequently been criticized by the media for abrupt and humourless demeanour as well as his iron-fisted control over all aspects of the government message. To help soften this image, government websites and official PMO emails will employ a range of different smiley-faces and other demonstrative emoticons.
The initiative is part of an effort to allow the media and the public to see "the real Stephen Harper", according to Harper's press secretary Carolyn Stewart-Olsen.
"People are always saying how dour and grim he is, but those of us who know him personally and receive paycheques from him know him to be a warm, tender man with the most tremendous sense of humour in the world," says Stewart-Olsen.
Style sheets on all Government of Canada websites have been adjusted so that all online references to the PM appear as "Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper :-D".
Reporters immediately began to notice on their Blackberries that practically every line of text sent from PMO sources ended in a winking-smiley. Samples of text sent to media sources include:
" - Burn in hell, you pinko bastard ;-)
- Consider yourself frozen, you loser ;-)
- It will be a cold day in hell before the PM takes another question from you ;-)
- You'll be writing stories for the Bumpuck Observer by the time we're done with you, you little weasel ;-)"
"We're just playing it safe. If there's a smiley, you can't get mad, right? A smiley means that, in real life, you would be saying it with a smile on your face and a chuckle in your voice, so you can't take it too seriously. I bet those reporters never got a smiley from the Liberals," said Stewart-Olsen.
posted by Mentok @ 3:27 p.m.,
5 Comments:
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At 7:39 p.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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His emotions have touched my soul. Those bastards at the CBC can burn in hell! -
At 10:34 p.m.,
mkecurler said...
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I'm laughing soo hard right now!!!!!
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At 4:08 a.m.,
A. B. Chairiet said...
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I like the little faces...I always use them with the utmost sincerity. ;)
(wink-wink)
Great post! Very funny. :)
Happy Tuesday,
~ Ash -
At 6:17 p.m.,
jamwall said...
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you're either with us or you're with the terrorists you terrorist ;-)
LOL
ROFL!
:) -
At 6:19 p.m.,
jamwall said...
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word verification:
lirzaps <---- lucid irate reptiles zap seattle.
