Taking a Stand: How and When Should Companies Speak Out on Political Issues?
From Margaret Steen, writing for Directors & Boards… When the nation was riveted by protests over police killings, should companies have added their voices to the discussion? Should every company have an official and public position on sustainability? Questions like these are arising with increasing frequency, as companies find themselves under pressure — from employees, […]
Resuscitating CDC’s Reputation
Once again, we highlight the work of Dr. Peter Sandman, one of the country’s preeminent experts on the subject of risk communications. In this piece, Dr. Sandman writes about what the CDC needs to do to regain public trust in talking about coronavirus, the tug-of-war between science and politics and the avoidance of hubris. As […]
“Use As Directed” Isn’t Just a Lawyer-Mandated Slogan
By Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications (Editor’s Note: The article below was written on April 19. On May 5, Peloton completely reversed itself and agreed to recall its Tread Plus treadmills from the U.S. market in a deal struck with federal safety regulators. “I want to be clear, Peloton made a mistake in our initial response […]
Why do Americans Share so Much Fake News? One Big Reason is They Aren’t Paying Attention, New Research Suggests
By Denise Marie-Ordway, writing for the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School… Many Americans share fake news on social media because they’re simply not paying attention to whether the content is accurate — not necessarily because they can’t tell real from made-up news, a new study in Nature suggests. Lack of […]
“I’m Afraid to Open Twitter”: Next-Level Harassment of Female Journalists is Putting News Outlets to the Test
By Charlotte Klein, writing for Vanity Fair… It started late one day, and you could see it kind of building on social media,” Washington Post national editor Steven Ginsberg recalled of the torrent of online abuse directed last month at Seung Min Kim. The Post reporter had been photographed showing Senator Lisa Murkowski a critical tweet sent by Neera Tanden and seeking comment, a standard journalistic practice somehow interpreted as […]
Few Facts, Millions Of Clicks: Fearmongering Vaccine Stories Go Viral Online
From Miles Parks at National Public Radio… The odds of dying after getting a COVID-19 vaccine are virtually nonexistent. According to recent data from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, you’re three times more likely to get struck by lightning. But you might not know that from looking at your social media feed. A new NPR analysis finds […]
New York Gov. Cuomo is the Textbook Example of How Not to Apologize
From Lisa Leopold, writing for The Conversation… New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s two apologies for alleged sexual misconduct are straight out of a master class in how not to say you’re sorry. The governor, who had become something of a celebrity during his nationally broadcast press conferences early in the coronavirus pandemic, is now embroiled in a sexual […]
Why Oprah’s Interview with Harry and Meghan Matters
From Tom Jones, writing for Poynter… Why should we care? What’s the big deal? Don’t we have more important things to worry about than some soap opera half a world away? That was the general feeling among many following Sunday night’s Oprah Winfrey interview with Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. Millions of […]
Inside the PGA Tour’s Shutdown at the 2020 Players Championship
From Ryan Lavner, writing for the Golf Channel… What they recall now, a year later, is the dizzying speed. How the novel coronavirus mushroomed from an international issue into a global pandemic. How in the span of a day, they retreated from 40,000 maskless fans to no spectators to zero tournaments – period – for […]
Beware Humor on Social Media – the Joke May Be on You and Your Reputation
By Thom Fladung, Hennes Communications The funny thing about trying to be humorous on social media is that it’s too often not funny – and can be quite damaging. Exhibit 1: On March 8, Burger King United Kingdom posted this to Twitter: “Women belong in the kitchen.” On International Women’s Day. The motivation actually was […]