unta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha speaks to reporters Tuesday at Government House in Bangkok
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BANGKOK – Junta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha’s military government today announced it will take a more aggressive role in directly countering “Negative News” information online.
According to Khaosod News, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office said all agencies have been asked to step up their public relations efforts in order to “create a positive image for their respective agencies and Thailand.”
The Prime Minister’s Office permanent secretary M.L Panadda Diskul said that officials responsible for the PR drive must also monitor news and other issues on a daily basis in order to combat any negative news in a timely manner.
“When there is negative news or misinformation, they must immediately tackle the problem with integrated measures, and they must not allow the news to spread and cause damage,” Panadda said.
Panadda’s announcement came after a renewed effort by the ruling junta to win cooperation from foreign-owned companies such as Google and Facebook in expediting censorship of comments deemed to violate Thai law, especially those that criticize the military government and the Royal Family.
On Thursday, a former district councilman in Bangkok was arrested after he allegedly shared a video mocking junta chairman Prayuth Chan-ocha to his friends and relatives on Line. Read more…