The U.N. department of public information

The U.N. Department of Public Information (DPI) has the responsibility “to promote to the greatest possible extent an informed understanding of the work and purposes of the United Nations among the peoples of the world.” Its 1946 Mandate from the General Assembly calls upon it to undertake “positive informational activities that will supplement the services of the existing agencies of information,” and specifically prohibits it from engaging in “propaganda.” Yet, just as almost all other parts of the U.N. have fallen short of fulfilling the aspirations and meeting the goals of its founders, the DPI has increasingly veered from its original mandate. By frequently distorting and often misrepresenting world events, the U.N.’s information arm helps to create false hopes and expectations among U.N. member‐states and their citizens—particularly those of the developing world who look to the U.N. to represent such principles as free speech, political and economic self‐determination, and human rights. Furthermore, by ignoring fundamental flaws and problems at the U.N., DPI prevents the U.N. from addressing and solving these issues. Finally, DPI's misrepresentation of reality significantly affects the way in which nations and their citizens view critical global issues. Like a house of mirrors at an amusement park, DPI distorts reality—exaggerating some things, diminishing others, and obscuring most

Amusement · Mandate · Misrepresentation · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Sociology · Work (physics · Intelligence, Security, War Strategy · Law · Public Administration

• Confusion rampant in heritage view or U.N. public information

  Bhaskar Menon, B P Menon•Political Communication•1986

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