{"id":266277,"date":"2023-03-13T08:22:31","date_gmt":"2023-03-13T08:22:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=266277"},"modified":"2023-03-14T07:27:28","modified_gmt":"2023-03-14T07:27:28","slug":"the-army-might-be-ditching-its-woke-image-as-it-faces-historic-recruiting-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/?p=266277","title":{"rendered":"The Army Might Be Ditching Its \u2018Woke\u2019 Image As It Faces Historic Recruiting Problems"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Micaela Burrow &#8212; The Daily Caller March 11, 2023<\/strong><\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The U.S. Army\u2019s new brand and ad campaign largely omits reference to woke identity politics and could be just what the service needs to overcome historic recruiting obstacles, experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Prior advertising efforts alienated conservative families that once served as the Army\u2019s primary recruiting base, according to experts. <\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>They \u201cforgot that the primary market for Army recruiting is young men from traditional families, looking for a challenge,\u201d Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, told the DCNF.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Army\u2019s new branding campaign, unveiled Wednesday, shied away from social justice and diversity themes as it seeks to overcome a historic drop in recruiting, military experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.<\/p>\n<p>The service\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/01\/11\/army-transgender-soldiers-training\/\">buy-in<\/a> on identity politics could turn off conservative families, which have traditionally served as the military\u2019s largest recruiting base, and <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/07\/20\/army-abandons-recruitment-goals-woke-policies\/\">exacerbated<\/a> the service\u2019s recruiting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=013858372769713515008:m9uq4uupsfm&amp;q=https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/07\/08\/army-boots-unvaccinated-soldiers-recruiting-crisis\/&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjTt7u6qNT9AhWqD1kFHfw2AWA4ChAWegQIAhAC&amp;usg=AOvV%20\">woes<\/a> in fiscal year 2022, experts and lawmakers warn. But, the years-in-the-making rebrand, with a goal of <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/03\/08\/army-boosts-recruiting-rebrand-be-all-you-can-advertisement\/\">showcasing<\/a> the Army\u2019s role in defense and innovation throughout American history and encouraging soldiers to push their limits, could help the Army meet its ambitious recruiting goals for 2023, experts in military readiness told the DCNF.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the new brand and commercial better appeal to young people\u2019s desire to be part of a big, important effort larger than themselves,\u201d Thomas Spoehr, director of the Heritage Foundation\u2019s Center for National Defense, told the DCNF. \u201cI think that is the right approach to take.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Army has come under fire for embracing perceived left-wing values in branding, <a href=\"https:\/\/taskandpurpose.com\/news\/army-recruitment-commercials-woke\/\">according<\/a> to Task and Purpose. One example is a 2021 advertising scheme that emphasized the different kinds of people who could join the service, highlighting a same-sex family.<\/p>\n<p>Left-wing trends in the military\u2019s education and personnel policies \u2014 including <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/06\/14\/house-republicans-lloyd-austin-department-defense-pride-month\/\">emphasizing<\/a> inclusion of LGBTQ+ servicemembers, <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/05\/06\/army-generals-diversity-women-combat-officer\/\">doubling down<\/a> on outreach to minority communities, and <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/04\/01\/tom-cotton-slams-military-promotion-critical-race-theory\/\">teaching<\/a> CRT and <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/09\/26\/air-force-seminar-transgender-visbility\/\">giving<\/a> pronoun advice at the <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/26\/west-point-covid-vaccine-new-cadets\/\">military academies<\/a> \u2014 to support \u201cdiversity as a strategic imperative\u201d could cause conservative, often white families to believe they \u201care not welcome or appreciated in the military,\u201d Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, told the DCNF in June.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cParents and Army veterans who are \u2018influencers\u2019 are not recommending military service to the next generation, and recruiting numbers show the deterioration,\u201d she added, as the Army was beginning to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=013858372769713515008:m9uq4uupsfm&amp;q=https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/06\/29\/wokeness-blame-military-recruitment-woes\/&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwi9npXS09T9AhUkFVkFHXX6Bw8QFnoECAEQAQ&amp;usg=AOvVaw1zZ0tJ3IzB%20\">realize<\/a> it might not make its recruiting goals for 2022.<\/p>\n<p>The new rebrand, however, has so far nixed emphasizing the background or identity of future soldiers or the supposed systemic disadvantages each has faced, though two commercials unveiled Wednesday did feature an ethnically diverse cast. At an event with Army officials promoting the rebrand, the word \u201cdiversity\u201d was only mentioned once, and that was in reference to the array of career fields available in the Army.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Army\u2019s identity-based marketing has been a disaster for recruiting, which is why they\u2019re shifting away from it. \u2026 The Army and every other branch needs to focus on appealing to all Americans, regardless of their political beliefs or background,\u201d Republican Indiana Rep. Jim Banks, who chairs the military personnel subcommittee on the House Armed Services Committee and has sworn to crack down on wokeness in the military, said to the DCNF.<\/p>\n<p>The campaign <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/article\/264594\/new_army_brand_redefines_be_all_you_can_be_for_a_new_generation\">resurrects<\/a> the \u201cbe all you can be\u201d slogan that served marketing and recruiting efforts from 1981 to 2001 and speaks to the possibilities for personal and career development the Army holds, according to Army Secretary Christine Wormuth, Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville and Sgt. Maj. Michael Grinston. It also involves nixing the box around the Army\u2019s recognizable five-pointed star logo.<strong>\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/28\/what-is-the-point-pentagon-mulling-discharges-for-unvaccinated-troops-who-didnt-seek-exemptions\/\"><strong>(RELATED: \u2018What Is The Point?\u2019: Pentagon Mulling Discharges For Unvaccinated Troops Who Didn\u2019t Seek Exemptions)<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Two new 90-second ads accompanying the rebranding guide the viewer through the history of the U.S. Army, from the colonial militias of the Revolutionary War to modern missions aimed at countering a rising China. They highlight themes of \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=4ItEHJc330Q\">overcoming obstacles<\/a>\u201d and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=epXX9ejnIqY\">pushing<\/a> toward the future with new technologies that better the lives of civilians as well as serving the nation\u2019s defense.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou could say that the new brand is \u201cnon-woke\u201d because it is completely absent of any suggestion that the Army is interested in any one demographic than another,\u201d Spoehr said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe images of history in the new ad ring true, but I hope that woke Critical Race Theory (CRT) activists don\u2019t get the chance to ruin what could be progress in reconnecting with traditional families who see America as a great country, not a racist country,\u201d Donnelly told the DCNF.<\/p>\n<p>Two prior marketing campaigns under the most recent branding scheme seemed to alienate some target audiences, Col. John Horning, who leads marketing and strategy for the Army Enterprise Marketing Office, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-army\/2023\/03\/08\/how-embracing-be-all-you-can-be-resurrected-army-marketing\/\">explained<\/a> to Army Times.<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cWhat\u2019s Your Warrior\u201d ad series rolled out in 2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/standto\/archive\/2019\/11\/15\/\">aimed<\/a> to showcase the wide variety of career fields available in the Army, but it\u2019s belligerent overtones turned away some hopeful audiences, Horning told the outlet. However, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/article\/245937\/u_s_army_reveals_the_people_behind_the_uniform_in_new_animated_film_series\">The Calling<\/a>, an anime-style video series <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/05\/12\/us-army-ad-lgbtq-march-lesbian-wedding\/\">released<\/a> in 2021, sparked condemnation from some conservative audiences.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEven with The Calling, we found that there was a prospect audience that absolutely identified [with it], but we\u2019re all very aware that it struck a nerve,\u201d Horning told Army Times. \u201cSome other people didn\u2019t identify with what we were trying to do, and it became a distraction.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One video in the series <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MIYGFSONKbk&amp;t=72s\">depicted<\/a> a future recruit named Emma attending a wedding for her \u201ctwo loving and inspiring mothers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Army intended the commercials to broaden its appeal to Gen Z audiences and present a range of relatable scenarios as the recruiting pool grows increasingly shallow, Task and Purpose reported. Instead, detractors launched a barrage of criticism against the videos for representing what they saw as a \u201cwoke\u201d and \u201cemasculated\u201d military.<\/p>\n<p>The ads \u201cforgot that the primary market for Army recruiting is young men from traditional families, looking for a challenge,\u201d Donnelly told the DCNF. \u201cLast year\u2019s recruiting crisis was partially fueled by that colossal mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Army missed its recruiting objectives for 2022 of 60,000 new members by 25%; to make up for that offset, the service set a \u201cstretch goal\u201d for 2023 to 65,000 recruits, according to Wormuth.<\/p>\n<p>The Army accelerated launch of the new branding effort to help with recruiting for 2023, Wormuth explained at the event Wednesday. The new campaign cost roughly $117 million to execute, she said, and is a result of extensive work that included focus groups with relevant stakeholders. But leaders are confident that a data-driven approach will yield results.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/11\/21\/rubio-roy-crt-gender-identity-military\/\">needs<\/a> an Army that <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/17\/four-us-troops-wounded-operation-to-take-out-isis-leader\/\">shows<\/a> itself to be a capable, hard-hitting force that can <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/23\/us-military-training-taiwan-porcupine-china\/\">defeat<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/03\/07\/lloyd-austin-iraq-islamic-state\/\">deter<\/a> enemy aggression, not one that prioritizes inclusion over competence and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=013858372769713515008:m9uq4uupsfm&amp;q=https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/12\/08\/congress-army-gender-neutral-fitness-test\/&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjIi8fdqdT9AhUfFVkFHaiGBgcQFnoECAMQAg&amp;usg=AOvVaw2W5S6bdbK%20\">lowers<\/a> standards to accommodate more self-described identities, GOP lawmakers <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/08\/republicans-vow-to-cut-wokeness-from-defense-budget\/\">argue<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">In 1981, \u201cBe All You Can Be\u201d inspired me to be the best version of myself I could be. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/NhoBNLDRA4\">pic.twitter.com\/NhoBNLDRA4<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; GEN James C. McConville (@ArmyChiefStaff) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ArmyChiefStaff\/status\/1634523675398488064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 11, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As recruiting appeared to slow in the spring and summer of 2022, the service <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/02\/23\/banks-waltz-army-recruiting-study-wokeness\/\">surveyed<\/a> Americans between the ages of 16 and 28 to find out why young people were choosing options besides serving in the military. Respondents cited as their number one concern that they \u201cwould be putting their life on hold,\u201d Grinston, the Army\u2019s top enlisted leader, testified to Congress on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>He <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/03\/09\/military-leaders-dei-recruiting-congress-politicization\/\">denied<\/a> that Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives hurt recruiting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey just don\u2019t perceive the Army as being in touch with the modern, everyday culture that they\u2019re used to,\u201d Army head of marketing Maj. Gen. Alex Fink <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/afghanistan-politics-military-and-defense-race-ethnicity-6548adcb0fee590f3427771d1e1eeea7?utm_source=homepage&amp;utm_medium=TopNews&amp;utm_campaign=position_07\">told<\/a> The Associated Press in context of the survey results.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/08\/01\/school-shutdowns-army-recruitment-national-security\/\">propensity<\/a> to serve has fallen to the lowest levels in 15 years. Only 9% of young people demonstrate a desire or willingness to join the Army, and of those, only 23% <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=013858372769713515008:m9uq4uupsfm&amp;q=https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/09\/16\/army-qualification-scores-plummeted-2022\/&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjTt7u6qNT9AhWqD1kFHfw2AWA4ChAWegQIAxAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw30nmlR10%20\">meet<\/a> physical, academic and legal qualifications \u2014 down from 29%, Grinston said.<\/p>\n<p>The Army <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/usarec\/status\/1612911571268673548?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1612911571268673548%7Ctwgr%5Eb2013f4246f5ba54a9c0895c5645d74e29b1e072%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%25%20\">doubled down<\/a> on messaging about benefits and career opportunities available to soldiers in 2022 and into 2023, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/article\/258373\/army_offering_major_incentives_to_future_soldiers\">offering<\/a> bonuses in the thousands of dollars for successful <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/article\/263437\/recruiting_pilot_soldier_referral_program_offers_promotion_incentives_for_soldiers\">referrals<\/a> and new recruits\u2019 willingness to ship out within 45 days of enlistment. It invested in health care, education support and vacation while <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/09\/12\/military-pay-food-stamps-inflation\/\">pleading<\/a> with lawmakers to set aside funding for housing assistance, child care and spousal career assistance, to <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/10\/22\/pentagon-suicide-report-army-problems\/\">hold on<\/a> to the recruits.<\/p>\n<p>It also <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/11\/18\/army-recruit-prep-course-wormuth\/\">plans<\/a> to expand opportunities for willing prospects to complete pre-enlistment programs that <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/07\/27\/military-fat-camp-overweight-potential-recruits\/\">offer<\/a> supplemental fitness training and academic tutoring for those who fall short of the Army\u2019s requirements in those areas.<\/p>\n<p>However, none of those efforts appeared to meaningfully move the needle on recruiting, Spoehr said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the Army (and the other services) are learning that recruiting messages that stress compensation and benefits are falling short,\u201d Spoehr told the DCNF.<\/p>\n<p>About 84% of new recruits come from military families, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.army.mil\/article\/261158\/in_a_war_for_talent_recruiting_retention_and_opportunity_army_leaders_work_to_grow_the_army_of_2030\">according<\/a> to Gen. McConville.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo we\u2019re becoming a military family business. We want to be an American family business,\u201d he told reporters Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need every young person in this country, we need every parent in this country, to know that the United States military is a pathway to success,\u201d McConville said.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2023\/03\/11\/army-wokeness-rebrand-recruiting-families\/\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new ad campaign with a return to a more traditional appeal for young men will attempt make up for a recruiting crisis, that US Army recruiters brought on themselves with an earlier &#8216;woke&#8217; campaign   <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39262,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-266277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-Current_Affairs"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39262"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=266277"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":266278,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266277\/revisions\/266278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=266277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=266277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=266277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}