Fish photo op gone wrong

On Wednesday, the public relations team of the Chiang Mai provincial administration ran a much-criticised public relations campaign showing provincial governor Thosapol Phueanudom eating fish caught from the Kok River.

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The image, posted on the administration’s Facebook page, showed the governor giving a thumbs up with a plate of fried fish in front of him with a caption saying: “Chiang Mai residents and tourists can be assured that fish from the Kok River caught in the Mae Ai district are safe to eat”.

Within an hour, the site drew a massive amount of comments, forcing the public relations team to remove the post on the same day.

This PR stunt reflects damage control strategies the Thai government has employed in dealing with food safety issues.

Indeed, Mr Thosapol is not the first to try and fail in using this kind of stunt.

During the avian flu crisis in 2004, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra launched a PR campaign where he ate fried chicken in a public display of support for the chicken industry.