Remarks Made by Memphis Police Chief in Aftermath of Tyre Nichols’ Death – A Master Class for Crisis Communications
By Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications In the aftermath of the death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of five police officers, the Memphis Police Chief chose not to stand behind the usual “This is a matter under investigation.” Instead, she made remarks that were honest and, in my opinion, stunningly blunt. Her outrage was evident […]
When Legal and Communications Collide: Making the Right Choice
By Richard Levick Speaking with journalists, shareholders, customers and stakeholders is easy when the going is good. As the old saying goes, “We are all capitalists on the way up but socialists on the way down.” But when things turn bad? Communication suddenly becomes much more challenging. As another old saying goes, “The gods of […]
Avoiding Communication Crises with NIL Campaigns
By Nicole Schuman for PRNEWS As summer winds down, college students return to school and so begins the rally cries and pep band revelry for collegiate athletics. And this year student-athletes have more on the line. As always, there are scholarships and professional league recruiting. In addition, it’s the first full academic year that student-athletes […]
Alec Baldwin Dodges Reporters
By Thom Weidlich for PRCG | Haggerty LLC The tragic film-set shooting involving Alec Baldwin is back in the news because prosecutors say they will criminally charge the actor in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. An incident connected to the news raises a crisis question: When is it okay to give reporters the slip? […]
The Age of Outrage: Crisis Management in Social Media Pile-Ons
By Howard Fencl, Hennes Communications There’s nothing the self-righteous embrace more than joining with their fellow self-righteous to gang up on some unfortunate target. The angrier the echo chamber, the better. Social media is their perfect rage machine. It’s where anonymous trolls can obsess and pile on. And they do it relentlessly and instantly over […]
How to Create a Crisis
GoLocal, an online publication in Providence, Rhode Island, recently wrote an editorial critical of recent decisions by Rhode Island education officials. The editorial creatively lists everything those officials have been doing to create a crisis juxtaposed with tips for managing a crisis the right way, written by Northeastern University’s Graduate School. We urge you to […]
Media Training for Attorneys and Their Clients – Done on Your Schedule and at Your Convenience – In-Person or Remote
Whether it’s a staff meeting on Teams, a webinar on Zoom, a private conversation on FaceTime or a short training video you record on WebEx, it’s not just what you say, but how you say it. And if it’s an interview with a seasoned reporter, the stakes are even higher. You must be prepared to […]
From a Police Department PIO: 10 Tips for Crisis Communications
Dionne Waugh, formerly a reporter and now a public information officer for the Boulder, Colorado Police Department, has deep experience helping police departments communicate with the public during critical incidents. That experience includes a mass shooting in 2021 when 10 people lost their lives. In a recent article by Wayne Parham written for Police Magazine, […]
The Olive Green Sweatshirt Goes to Congress
In the seminars we teachabout crisis communications, we often talk about the fact that what you say may be less important than how you say it. “How you say it” also includes the way you look. Ukranian President Zelensky purposely chose not to wear a suit and tie for his recent visit to Washington, DC. […]
Crisis Management Lessons From Southwest Airlines’ Meltdown
By Edward Segal for Forbes As Southwest Airlines struggles to recover from its weather-related meltdown, crisis management and crisis communication lessons have already emerged that business leaders should keep in mind before they have to confront their own crisis. The Importance Of Modernization “The biggest lesson other business leaders can take from the Southwest implosion is […]