To be informed about the Iranian nuclear, do not hesitate. Call Washington DC!
(BRUSSELS2) The negotiation on the Iranian nuclear issue further illustrates the crucial gap between the treatment of the media in Europe and in the United States. With the High Representative of the EU providing the "lead" of the negotiations, one could say that the European media will have a head start. What a mistake !
In Brussels, you often have to make do with a press release with a few lines, or even a tweet, informing that the negotiation went well. If he is enterprising enough, he will be able to obtain two or three little sentences of explanation, often sibylline, from a very courteous European diplomat. But it's off! eh. And, if he is very wise and faithful, he will be invited - with a few others happy few - a briefing at the European diplomatic service (EEAS), with a subject specialist. In general, it is Helga Schmid, the political director of the EEAS, who officiates. A perfect connoisseur of the file since it is she who negotiates. No report of this meeting will be made for the vast majority of journalists who are not invited. And if you are not a little conciliatory with the person of Lady Ashton, not to say "docile", you will be deprived of dessert... (in other words an interview with the Chef herself, rare and therefore Dear!).
Let's look at what is happening in Washington, the same (classic) process is taking place: sound bites, tweets, briefings... with a fundamental difference. The briefing, made on the other side of the Atlantic, is immediately transcribed and available to journalists (even those who were not invited or not present in Washington). The latest briefing, to date, on the 5+1 action plan was thus made available from 14 p.m. today. It has more than 9000 words! (20 tight written pages), with many details, it must be said! And it's not off!
In EU-US relations, the winner of the communication game is therefore... inevitably Washington! Whereas it is the European Union which does a good part of the work. It's not fair, no doubt. But it is the law of visibility.
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)
(*) We say E3+3 in Europe so as not to upset Germany, which is not a permanent member of the Security Council unlike the "5" permanent members of the UNSC.
