It is welcome news that the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) has been training the government’s communicators – those people who get paid to disseminate information to, or answer questions from, the media which, in turn, conveys that information to the public.
GCIS deputy director-general Michael Currin told trainees that government communications personnel must navigate an increasingly complex information landscape, particularly in the era of fake news. Currin said communicators are “the bridge between government and the citizens we serve” – and we’d like to pause there… on that radical idea that those employed by the government are serving the rest of us.
ALSO READ: GCIS urges communicators to fight fake news trend
There are very few government departments in which that ethos is even thought about, never mind being diligently applied every day. Most interactions with civil servants – and that latter word has more of a mocking than descriptive quality, these days – are ones fraught with tension as these bureaucratic minions revel in their power over us.
Despite the fact that government communicators are generally considered to be a cut above the level of ordinary civil servants, and despite the fact that their numbers have been seemingly growing at an astounding rate in recent years, they are, with few exceptions, cut from the same cloth as the vindictive person behind a home affairs counter.
Calls for comment are often not returned, and even full written questions sent via e-mail attract no response, or the callback will come too late for a deadline. In many cases, there is little reason for this behaviour, other than a lack of energy or a lack of respect.
What GCIS needs to do is understand the needs of the people – and media – it serves. It will find many of us are only too happy to work together. Good communication is good for everyone.
