State Dept. Ad Campaign Asks Public to Help Catch Terrorists

“Do you know a terrorist? . . . Now, do something about it. . . . You may be eligible for a reward.”

The State Department rolled out a public service advertising campaign Thursday aimed at getting Americans to be on the lookout for terrorists and turn suspects in when they spot them.

The brainchild of Charlotte Beers, the Madison Avenue executive brought in to give State Department diplomacy more market savvy, the ads may soon be translated into Arabic and Spanish, and some version of the public service announcements may soon run overseas or on the Internet.

But for now the message is directed inward, to the audience at home. “Before Sept. 11, it might have been unthinkable for us to say, ‘Among us lives a terrorist,’ ” Beers told reporters. “Now it’s unquestioned.”

That emphasis angered Arab American activists, including Khalil Jahshan, vice president of the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee, who argued that the campaign in effect “asks the profiled to profile their own.”

The radio and newspaper ads promote the State Department’s Rewards for Justice program, created in 1984, which is now offering up to $25 million for information leading to the capture of terrorists such as Osama bin Laden.

David Carpenter, assistant secretary of State for diplomatic security, said the program has logged some successes, most notably the 1995 capture in Pakistan of Ramzi Yousef, later convicted for his role in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

Carpenter noted that the program has disbursed about $7 million over the last eight years and that the identity of all 22 informants has been protected. In some cases, they and their families were relocated.

The campaign also taps the Internet and marketing expertise of two businessmen who volunteered after the Sept. 11 attacks to bolster the government’s fight against terrorism.

The co-founders of a private fund for the Rewards for Justice program have used their Internet experience to improve the program’s Web site (https://rewardsforjustice.net) and worked with Florida and other states to allow motorists to purchase

“United We Stand” license plates. Proceeds from the license plate sales and private donations would be used to augment the State Department’s budgeted reward funds.

“This is fighting terrorism with capitalism,” said Scott Case, a co-founder of Priceline.com and one of the founders of the Rewards for Justice Fund. “We expect a tsunami of people coming forward with information.”

Maybe, but the ads hit a sour note with some.

“The mountain roared and gave birth to a mouse,” said Jahshan. “If that’s the best the U.S. government, coupled with the skills of the private sector, can produce at this time, we are in deep trouble.”

The ads also surprised some public relations experts who had expected a more broad-based campaign to sway Arab opinion by explaining the war on terrorism or the U.S. history of fighting--with money and muscle--for Muslim countries.

They recommended a blitz that would “brand” the idea of America’s involvement.

“They should be branding that only one country in the world fought so many wars for Muslim countries in the last 10 years,” said a Washington lobbyist and public relations expert who asked not to be identified because he did not want to publicly criticize the administration in a time of war. Listing Kuwait, Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina--lands that are predominantly or partially Muslim--he mapped out an ad campaign in which everyday residents would look into the camera and thank the United States for saving them.

The public service announcement ends by encouraging listeners to “do something about it. Call Rewards for Justice at 1-800-USREWARDS. Or e-mail us at mail@rewardsforjustice.net. You may be eligible for a reward. Your call or e-mail will remain confidential.”

The message struck the ad copy writers as so stark that Beers decided to add background music to soften the effect.