How Strategic Messaging Boosted Hassan's Ratings
Ammon News - Earlier this May, the Centre for Strategic Studies at the University of Jordan published the results of a public opinion poll on the performance of the Jafar Hassan government after 200 days.
The poll indicated that the Jordan citizens and public elites view the government's performance favourably, believe it is well-equipped to lead Jordan to the next stage, and have skillfully navigated current geopolitical crises. These results were published as the Hassan government was facing challenging and ambiguous geopolitical and international realities. In the region, the onslaught on Gaza continues, Syria consistently has rapid developments on a significant magnitude, and Trump's executive orders and statements have shifted public policies on tariffs, sanctions, aid, and security.
Accounting for all these factors, the question of whether the high ratings Hassan has received, the highest since 2011, are due to positive development in aspects of Jordanian life, or other factors. I argue that academic works, such as Weinberg (2024), can help shed some light on one of the reasons for this success: a successful public communication approach. In this article, I take the Instagram account of the Prime Ministry in its first week as a sample for analysis of the strategy followed by the PM's public communication team, examining commonalities and methods used to drive 'authentic trust' and appeal to the masses. While the timeframe is limited, it offers a useful snapshot of the government's communication approach.
The first aspect of building authentic trust is regular outreach, which I will asses through post frequency. In the sample under review, the Prime Ministry's account posted 13 posts, nearly twice a day. Most importantly about these posts: each post was unique, and they emphasised the content, instead electing to choosing the most 'catchy' soundbites. As an example, on September 22nd, the account posted two videos from the same speech tackling one subject. However, each video had a separate identity: one on the role of the government, the other on consulting public opinion, and these differences were reflected in their respective thumbnails.
In comparison, within the first week of the Khasawneh government, the same Instagram account posted seven videos in the span of three days, with all 7 videos having the same formulation, and being direct videos from the PM's remarks to parliament.
The second aspect of gaining public trust is message framing. The posts within the period did not intend to serve as an outline of the technical details or share the political jargon common in speeches. Instead, the posts emphasised content that appeals to the public, with the first post's caption being:Prime Minister Dr. Jaafar Hassan chaired the first Cabinet meeting after taking the constitutional oath, telling his ministers: 'You must understand that every hour of work is a duty you owe to the nation, so do not fall short—not even for a minute.'
Hassan also announced during the session that Cabinet meetings will be held once a month in the governorates. (Jordan [@primeministryjordan], 2024)
The rest of the posts in the sample tackle three main themes often considered as the main concerns among Jordanians: national economic reform, economic growth in the governorates, and genuine awareness. The first two, although tackled by the previous government through publicising the Economic Modernisation Vision, were more directly addressed by the posts in question, through highlighting directives on accelerated completion of economic projects, and healthcare service expansion in governorates. The third theme, and perhaps the most interesting, is not being disconnected, which is the most common complaint about political classes and political elites. This theme is addressed through posts documenting field visits.
Legitimacy of posting on field visits is solidified through the third aspect, often the most overlooked, visual messaging. The underlying message of these visits, that the PM is close to the people and listens directly to them, is conveyed by framing him as an active listener in these posts. In contrast, media covering the PM position as head of government, whether addressing his cabinet, meeting foreign dignitaries, or making statements in parliament, always frame him as the dominant speaker.
The culmination of these three aspects in creating authentic trust explains, in effect, the record-breaking approval ratings for the current government, even though there is some overlap in membership between the current and previous government, economic indicators are yet to show improvement, and the region is at low levels of stability. Although political commentators argue that economic performance is trending upwards and that the regional instability helped Hassan achieve these numbers, I argue that the public affairs strategy, which I showcased a sample of in this article, plays a relatively larger part in garnering this authentic trust.
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