Branded

The state's overreaction to the phony RFRA outrage has officially hit rock bottom:

Indiana's economic development and tourism agencies announced Monday they have hired global PR firm Porter Novelli to help rebuild the state's image in the wake of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act debacle.

The state will spend the coming days building a public relations strategy with the firm and stakeholders across the state and plans to spend $2 million with Porter Novelli, plus however much more is needed in actual advertising buys.

[. . .]

The state took a major public relations hit at the start of the month with the swirl of negative attention surrounding Gov. Mike Pence's signing of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. There is little doubt that Indiana's national image took a hit, but nobody has been able to quantify exactly how much damage was done.

[. . .]

The decision to hire Porter Novelli, which has 100 offices in 60 countries, was made last week. State leaders specifically sought a company with global reach that could approach the state's branding with an outsider's eyes, Cotterill said.

So we need a company with "global reach" to tinker with the state's branding. Whew! How's that gonna work, exactly? Produce a bunc of ads showing a gay wedding at the Indiana Dunes?

I mean, this is just marketing, right? Showing the state as a warm and friendly place to hang out, with neat stuff to do and see. Doesn't the state already do that? Or will they go more for the direct approach? "Come to Indiana, please! We don't hate gays, honest! Quite picking on us, OK?"

Silly, silly, silly.