Exclusive: Academy of Motion Pictures CEO Says New ‘Crisis Team’ Will Handle Future Fiascos Like the ‘Slap’
By Eliana Dockterman for TIME Since taking over the position of CEO of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences last July, Bill Kramer has spent a lot of time putting out fires. In the past two years, the Oscars ratings sank to their lowest in the show’s history. The Academy has tasked Kramer […]
Workers Fault Their Company’s Internal Comms
By Steve Barnes for O’Dwyers Most company leaders feel that they’re doing a good job when it comes to internal comms, according to communications management platform Axios HQ. Employees, however, aren’t quite so sure. Out of the more than 1,000 leaders that Axios polled last November, 77 percent said that essential communications at their organizations […]
How to…Cope with the Press
By Charles Gary for Police Mag Less than a month into her job as director of public information, Capt. Nancy Demme of the Montgomery County (Md.) Police Department was looking forward to attending a media training program in neighboring Arlington. Demme never got to attend a single session. Instead, a deadly shooting spree began, and—ready […]
When ‘Correct’ Writing Looks Wrong, What’s a PR Writer to Do?
By Paul Stregevsky for PRNEWS While shopping, a sign jolted me. Its grammar was so jarring, I read it twice: “We require that all supplements are third-party tested to contain what they claim.” Shouldn’t it read “that all supplements be tested?” Fifty years ago, I’d have firmly answered, “Of course.” Today, “Maybe not.” Times ain’t what they used to was. As […]
Considerations Before Trying to Squash the Negative Story
By Erika Bradbury for PRNEWS It’s about to happen. You hear a story will run that says unfavorable things about your company. Or, perhaps it’s a story that might lead to negative financial ramifications for your client’s organization. Perhaps, you think, as a PR pro you are paid to use your relationship with the reporter […]
Who Had Meth in their Underwear? The Crucial Need for Clarity in Communications
by Howard Fencl, Hennes Communications Headlines tell your story. Well, good headlines do. Sometimes, because of the arcane vagaries of the English language, a headline can convey eye-opening meanings you never intended. There’s a classic example in which this innocent sentiment LET’S EAT, GRANDMA! becomes something quite different, and something quite sinister, when the comma […]
Mastering the Zoom Apology
By Bruce Hennes & Nora Jacobs, Hennes Communications A CEO, executive director, bar association president or other business executive has to apologize or speak about something very important. The stakes are high – and the apology is going to have to be done using Zoom or another virtual platform. Under any circumstance, delivering an effective […]
In a PR Crisis, Admit the Truth Now or Pay The Price Later
By Arthur Solomon for PRNEWS There’s a maxim that says the cover-up is worse than the crime. Another variation is the cover-up makes the crime worse. A prime example is the cover-up of the break-in at Democratic National Committee HQ at the Watergate Hotel, in 1972. In our business, unsuccessful cover-ups have brought many entities massive negative media coverage. Years […]
Preparing to Announce Layoffs in a Virtual Meeting
By Kathryn Janicek for Harvard Business Review Alongside meetings, job interviews, and even social events, layoffs have entered the virtual era. It was, after all, inevitable. In a recent McKinsey study, 35 percent of respondents reported that they were able to work remotely full time. Logic follows that when someone works remotely, they can be laid off remotely, too. […]
Grading Memphis PD’s Communication: Better Than Some, But Not Perfect
By John Guilfoil for PRNEWS [Editor’s Note: One of many things under scrutiny in the killing of Tyre Nichols is how the Memphis Police Department (MPD) communicated in its initial press release and police report. Critics charge there were gross mischaracterizations of what occurred. Moreover, they contrast with bodycam video and other footage of Mr. Nichols’s beating. We asked communicator […]