COMMUNICATION: Obama is taking over information leadership in the environmental drama in the Gulf.
As soon as there is hope that the leaking borehole of the “Deep Water Horizon” in the Gulf of Mexico has succeeded, Barack Obama's communications teams are switching from ad hoc crisis communication to a new form of storytelling: The website, which was launched in a hurry following the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig Deepwaterhorizonresponse.com Thanks to the new website Restorethegulf.gov replaced.
The name of the new website makes it clear that the accent is now being shifted away from the immediate response to the crisis and towards more positive reconstruction. Another important point is shown in the “.gov” addendum: The top-level domain (TLD) .gov is only open to government agencies. The US government is thus seizing information sovereignty in the environmental crisis in the Gulf even more clearly and is providing Restorethegulf.gov It is clear where the official information will come from in the future.
Deepwaterhorizonresponse.com had offered a mix of government information and information from BP — a fact that was also criticized. BP, however, strives to play an active role in the information itself: The global website BP.com It is all about the crisis. It provides up-to-date information and direct contact options.