The other day I was thinking, why aren’t contractors represented at American Forces Network? There are thousands of us overseas, and we have been a part of the war effort for years now. So where is the acknowledgement of our existence at AFN?
I say this, because every contractor that has ever been to Iraq or Afghanistan, has been exposed to AFN. We watch all the DoD commercials about safety or suicide prevention or wearing reflector belts on bases, yet there is nothing about contractors. I think the only commercial I have ever seen dealing with contractors, is a hotline that troops can call if they see contractors ripping off the government. I wonder if there are any commercials that give information on how to turn in troops who are ripping off the DoD? Or are contractors the only ones that can do harm?
Furthermore, you watch all these shows like the Pentagon Channel or the Marines or Army Show, and it is great to see news about what they are doing in the war, but what about the thousands of contractors performing important and essential missions as well? How about the guys training Afghan Army or Border Patrol folks? Isn’t that a crucial element to the strategy in Afghanistan, yet the contractor side of this is completely ignored?
How about the munitions clearance programs, or the interpreters, or the dining facility folks? Where’s the Christmas messages from the various company management out there? Or the thanks from Generals or Congressmen for the work we have done? I mean you guys contracted our services, are you not thankful for that service?
I guess my point is, is that we continue to be treated as if we do not exist, or that we really don’t matter in this war. The reality is that we do matter and we do have a great impact on this war. And for the DoD to not at least use AFN to communicate with their contractor force, is just stupid.
They could be developing public service messages that communicate directly to contractors. The DoD can also target contractors with their resiliency messages, to prevent any future Fitzsimmons type incidents. There is so much that needs to be said and communicated to my group, yet there is silence. If in fact the DoD wants to make contracting work in this war, they need to connect with us. To not take advantage of this media tool to create a unity of effort in this war, is yet again, a strategic mistake.
The irony of it all, is that AFN uses civilians and contractors in the production of their shows. But shhhhh, don’t tell anyone. lol –Matt