Save the Recordings of School Shootings
By Charlie Warzel, writing for the New York Times: You can’t see much in the haunting video of Tuesday’s shooting at the STEM School in Highlands Ranch, Colo. — just darkness and an eerie voice repeating a prerecorded warning over a loudspeaker. “Attention please. Lockdown. Lock, lights, out of sight.” Two videos with a combined runtime of 82 seconds […]
What To Do if There’s a Harvey Weinstein in Your Ranks
From Insurance Business Magazine, with quotes from Thom Fladung, (now) managing partner of Hennes Communications: First there was Harvey Weinstein. We were horrified, but we’d seen things play out like this occasionally before, like with Bill Cosby or Clarence Thomas. But then there was Kevin Spacey. And Jeffrey Tambor, Louis CK, US Senator Al Franken, […]
When the CEO Must be the Spokesperson
[By Nora Jacobs, Hennes Communications] One of the questions we frequently debate with clients when they are about to make a public announcement is the question of attribution: Who’s going to speak on behalf of the organization? After explaining all the reasons why having members of our crisis team fill that role is a bad […]
“Taking Out the Trash” is Not a Crisis Management Option
[by Howard Fencl & Thom Fladung, Hennes Communications] Memorial Day – just last weekend – may already be a wistful memory for you. If you watched local TV news – and almost no one does on holiday weekends – you know it was dominated by stale, cliché, perennial coverage of barbeque tips, parades, gas prices […]
Want A Good Answer Amid A Crisis? Know The Question Before It’s Asked
By Thom Fladung/Hennes Communications The Q&A session is a staple of leadership, whether those questions come at you in employee meetings, community forums or in an interview with a journalist. It can be challenging in any setting. But doing a Q&A amid a crisis or serious issue your company or organization is facing ratchets up […]
President Trump, the Russian Connection & Crisis Communications
By Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications Some believe President Trump and his closest advisers committed illegal acts by conspiring with Russian officials on a wide variety of political and financial activities. Some believe President Trump and his closest advisers indeed had contacts with Russian officials, but that those contacts were benign or perhaps even stupid, but […]
If Your Company Is Going Through a Public Scandal, Should You Leave?
Thanks to our friend and colleague, Linda Bluso, Founder & CEO of the Adaptive Knowledge Institute®, for the lead to this article from the Harvard Business Review: Having your employer get caught in a public scandal is an agonizing professional experience. Even if your company comes out okay financially, it’s likely to have a tarnished reputation. How do […]
New ‘Morning Edition’ Theme Aspires to be ‘Inclusive and Inviting’
From Adam Ragusea, Journalist in Residence and Visiting Assistant Professor, Mercer University Center for Collaborative Journalism: The new Morning Edition music debuted Monday. As a composer-turned-pubradio-guy-turned-journalism-prof who still sometimes writes music for shows, here is my take on it, along with reactions I’ve gathered from other people and some perspective from the person who oversaw its production. […]
How Your Strengths Can Sometimes Become Weaknesses
From Adam Grant, writing for the New York Times: Not long ago, I had dinner with an unusually charming friend. He entertained us with stories of arctic adventures, and he captivated us with commentary on how the Lannister-Stark conflict in “Game of Thrones” could explain foreign affairs in real life. But I left with a […]
Sometimes It’s Best to Shut Up – Inside Lori Loughlin’s Crisis PR Strategy
From Rose Minutaglio writing in Elle: A slew of nameless sources claiming to be “close to” Lori Loughlin and “familiar with her case” have been feeding what seems like endless fodder to tabloids since news of the college admissions scandal broke in March. “It’s killing her that her squeaky-clean reputation has done a total 180. […]