[Vnbiz] Vietnam's PM bans civil servants from talking to media

[Tran Dinh Hoanh]

Dear anh Shane and CACC,

Of course, you cannot afford to allow every employee to talk to the
press.  Many employees do not know the full extent of an issue and may
give out wrong information to the press.

All private companies will fire you if you talk to the press without
permission.  In the government offices, if you talk to the press
without your boss' permission, you talk at your own peril.  If things
go wrong, you may be in hot waters.

Each company, each government agency designates a public relations
department to deal with the press.  It is to make sure that the
information given out on behalf of the company or agency is correct.
Most news articles in the US will cite "a defense department official"
or "high ranking state department officials" without a name, because
they may be in trouble if their name is out.

This prohibition is reasonable as an administrative matter.  The issue
of the "flow of information" is different:  Is there a legal procedure
in place for the press to gain non-confidential information from the
government, such as the Freedom of Information Act in the US?

Have a great day!

Hoanh