Iraq PR: Same as it Ever Was

The PR firm Burson-Marsteller's lobbying unit, BKSH & Associates, "has added the Republic of Iraq to its client roster," reports O'Dwyer's. "The Washington, DC-based firm had worked for the [U.S.-funded] Iraqi National Congress opposition group during the reign of Saddam Hussein." Burson-Marsteller has already "helped the deputy military attache do outreach to key media outlets," including the Wall Street Journal and CNN, and has contacted the U.S. State Department and National Security Council on behalf of the Iraqi Embassy. The firm's Iraq contract also includes setting up editorial board meetings, placing op/ed pieces, and strengthening "ties with organizations like the American Enterprise Institute, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Council on Foreign Relations and Business Council for International Understanding."