Unspun

In media training we tell spokespersons NEVER to repeat a negative, especially when it evokes strong feelings or reactions.

This is something that Silfester Matutina, leader of Jokowi’s supporters and hence acknowledged protector of the President’s good name, obviously failed to do in a talkshow with CNN Indonesia’s Rivana.

https://twitter.com/GunRomli/status/1833716218601349191/video/1

It is about the alleged armpit BO (bau ketek) of Erina, wife of Son #2: Kaesang Pangarep. Repelled by the whiff of something personal and irrelevant when Silfester first brought up the subject, show hostess Rivana said that that was not what they wanted to discuss.

Tone deaf and malodorous, Silfester festered on about her ketek. He was trying to deny that she suffered from BO but what he actually did was to refreshen (bad pun?) the association between Erina and her odor in the minds and nostrils of the audience.

It didn’t matter that he denied that she had BO. What mattered was that both BO and Erina were mentioned again and again, reinforcing the association. This is why we always tell participants at media training sessions never to repeat a negative. Better find synonyms or talk around the subject.