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Crisis Communications
Steps For Managing A Media Crisis
Dr. Jim Humphries
President and News Director
Veterinary News Network
www.MyVNN.com
Dr.Jim@MyVNN.com
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Crisis Communications
17 Steps For Managing A Media Crisis
This morning as you prepared to leave for work, you saw
an amazing thing. There on the morning news was your
business being slammed by some person you dont
even know. Most of what was being said was not even
true, nor did you know the issue being discussed was a
problem. Suddenly its all over the news! What are you
going to do? Call the reporter and read her the riot act?
Call your lawyer and sue the TV station? Pretend it didnt
happen? What will you do?
Regardless of the size of your business or practice, you
should have a crisis communications plan. Having such a
plan will prevent you from wasting precious time trying to
decide how to communicate internally and externally.
This plan can be very simple or elaborate depending on
your companys size, number of employees and specific
need. The plan comes into effect when any situation
threatens the reputation of your business usually brought
about by adverse or overtly negative media attention.
Typical crisis situations usually involve some
type of legal issue, public relations misstep
or damage / disaster brought on by your
company. A crisis communications situation
can also be some negative, unusual or even
patently false accusations or public attention
centering on an issue you feel is vital to your
business.
Examples of crisis communications situations:
Classic situations involve an inappropriate response to an
issue that has now gained some media attention. Here
some well-meaning people or company representatives
can make a simple situation very bad very fast. This can
occur by ignoring a simple fact, strictly adhering to legal
If an issue turns
negative, and the
media has the story
you have a crisis
communications
problem.
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or company policy in the face of a common sense
alternative, or by simply making a natural mistake and
trying to cover it up.
Another example of a crisis communications situation
would involve an emotional or controversial issue where
the other side has over stated their position in the public
media and created the need for your response.
A serious case of a corporate crisis would be a product or
service that has caused harm to or even death of the
public.
Other causes are unauthorized procedures, inadequate
supervision, inadequate safety procedures, inadequate
quality control, misuse of confidential information, errors
in judgment, improper standard operating procedures,
human error or simple mistakes.
The final result in a crisis communication problem
depends on how it is handled and the net affect on your
public reputation. Here is the essence of what you must
know to tackle this problem:
Tell It All, Tell It Fast, Tell The Truth!
Far too many individuals or companies dig themselves a
very deep hole by not adhering to this one simple
principle.
Before the Crisis
Prior to any crisis communications issue you should
establish who will make critical decisions in handling the
situation. For a small company or practice, this may be a
very simple decision. This small team would include the
business owner, an office manager and perhaps some
members of your technical support staff.
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For larger companies the team should
include the CEO, VPs, Senior
Management, the head of the Public
Relations Department or agency and any
experts in the area that can add technical expertise.
Optional participants would include in-house lawyers,
company spokespersons, safety and security officers, and
outside consultants in a technical field or communications
specialty.
The job of this team is to develop a plan of action to follow
in the event of any media or situational issue that could
be considered a crisis. The key here is to do this in
ADVANCE! At the beginning of an actual crisis is not the
time to organize a group and decide each persons
responsibility. Having this meeting and formulating a
simple plan now, while you are thinking clearly, will save
you valuable time when you most need it.
Your crisis communications team should be ready to act
at a moments notice. Each member should be easy to
reach anytime of the day or night and everyone should
know what is expected of them. Therefore you need to
construct a contact sheet with each members name,
work, home, cell, and pager numbers. Then formulate a
specialty email list for mass notification.
Next, the team should decide a basic flow of action in the
event of a crisis. It is recommended that you have some
communications pre-written. These pre-written
communications might include what will be said on the
phone before your press conference and a basic press
release where you can simply fill in specifics and release
it quickly. These preliminary communications only take
care of the who, what, when, where issues.
Develop a Crisis
Communications
Team in advance.
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Sample Script for Phone Operators: The facts are still
being collected and we are planning a press conference
this afternoon. If I can get your name and phone
number, I would be happy to call you back with the exact
time.
Sample Press Release Template:
A (what happened) at (where) involving (who) occurred at
(when). The incident is currently under investigation and
we are gathering all the facts as quickly as we can. More
information will be forthcoming.
Some known details may be included but they must be
facts and not speculation. Be sure to verify everything
you say as this will help your future credibility. You may
also include the time for your press conference or next
news release.
When a Crisis Happens
After a crisis is identified, immediately assemble the team
and begin making decisions.
Here are the 17 steps you should follow:
1) Bring the situation under control and protect people
and property.
2) Decide if the situation is truly newsworthy. Some
situations may seem like a crisis to you, but would
have little or no interest to the media. In this case you
should certainly not create a media crisis by jumping
the gun.
3) Assess severity, length of issue and media life. If you
believe this is a very small flash in the pan it may be
best to not make public statements for 24-48 hours
and see how quickly the issue goes away.
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4) Quickly gather all the facts you can. Dont speculate.
5) Decide on your primary positioning or main message
that addresses the situation. Do the right thing by
putting the publics interest ahead of your
organizations interest.
6) Develop a list of message points dealing with the
issue. Anticipate questions you will receive. Craft
answers to each. Include the tough hot seat
questions.
7) Confirm or change your pre-assigned spokesperson,
back up spokesperson and technical support persons.
Remind your spokesperson that money estimates,
insurance coverages, speculation as to the cause, and
placing of blame are not to be discussed. Also, remind
everyone that no statements from anyone are off the
record.
8) Establish a phone message. Have phone operators
strictly adhere to the message no ad-libing and also
remind them that nothing is off the record.
Good examples are;
Weve just learned of the situation and we are
gathering all the facts now. We will have a press
conference in a few hours.
We are working hard to bring the situation under
control now, so we cant speculate on that. We will
have more information later today.
A log of all incoming telephone media contacts should
be established. This will let you make sure no media
outlet is missed when call backs are required and will
help in the post-crisis analysis.
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9) Distribute a press release stating only the known basic
facts and do not speculate. Give a time for a press
conference if deemed necessary. In this initial
communication, show concern for the public and your
employees. Many times a mental impression is all an
audience is left with and the impression you should
establish is one of concern and compassion.
10) Share some information with your employees. If
your employees dont feel like insiders, they will act like
outsiders. That could cause you to loose control of the
information flow.
11) Rehearse all media message points and expected
questions. This is essential and must be done, even in
a rush situation. Your spokesperson team must get in a
quiet private space and practice delivering the answers
everyone has agreed upon. One member of the team
should think like a reporter and role play by asking all
spokespersons all questions. Spokespersons should
practice staying on message. All expected difficult
questions should be rehearsed many times and asked
many different ways. Do not skip this vital rehearsal!
12) Give the media all the information you can (even the
bad news) so you are the source and you are in control
of the release of bad news. In a crisis communications
situation you should always attempt to control the flow of
information. Be confident, tough and prepared.
13) Be honest. Tell the media you are being honest and
you have nothing to hide. Tell them you have corrected
the situation and are taking all proper follow-up steps.
When you have done the right thing and have taken all
the right steps, it is easy to be honest with the media
and your statements will come across as sincere. Do
not volunteer any information other than the question at
hand and your prepared message points.
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14) Be prepared to answer all the hot seat questions
and then bridge to a positive position or message point.
Dont get caught in a question and answer session
because all the questions will be about the crisis. Take
the opportunity to bridge to the positive aspects of what
you do, what you have done and what will be done to
prevent this from happening in the future.
15) If it is not too contrived, perform some act of goodwill
either during or immediately after a crisis. This takes the
sting out of bad press and proves you have gone the
extra mile to help the situation or damaged parties.
16) Follow-up. Make sure all media receives any
promised detailed information as quickly as possible.
Correct any problems with those affected by the crisis
and do whatever is required to restore your companys
reputation and your consumers confidence.
17) Make some changes. Actively correct policies or
problems that will prevent a repeat of the crisis situation.
Revise your crisis communications plan based on your
experience.
The governing rule in crisis
communications is to Tell it all, tell it fast
and tell the truth. If a mistake has been
made, its almost always best to admit that
up front and immediately begin doing
everything to re-establish your credibility
and consumer confidence.
This is a very difficult step for the lawyers. Their job is to
keep all legal options open and minimize liability and
costs. However, crisis management case studies have
proven that admitting a mistake and moving forward with
positive steps that establish credibility and confidence are
almost always the best and least costly steps. If the
lawyers have too much to say about this initial process
If a mistake is
made, admit it and
begin the process of
re-establishing your
credibility.
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without the influence of common sense and honest
admissions, it will look like stalling tactics. That will only
hurt you and the situation will quickly get worse. If you
appear to be stalling, the company will stand to lose
credibility, customers and its honest image. In situations
like this, I recommend you carefully consider legal input,
but do not let the lawyers make the communications
decisions.
Your Spokesperson
Who you choose to be your spokesperson is a critical
decision. In some cases the spokesperson should be a
high ranking company representative. In large
organizations a designated or professional spokesperson
may also be used. A spokesperson must have a variety
of unique qualities and experience levels.
Qualities of the ideal spokesperson:
Be comfortable in front of a TV camera and with
reporters
Be skilled in answering media questions and
redirecting questions as needed
Must be able to stay on message
Should speak without using your industrys jargon
Understands the role of the reporters
Should have a good understanding of the crisis
Must establish credibility with the media
Project confidence to the audience
Be well spoken
Have a pleasing, trusting appearance
Be sincere, straightforward and believable
Be accessible to the media
Remain calm in stressful situations
In addition to your designated spokesperson, you should
have a back-up. Also prepare any technical experts you
may need for adding detailed facts if necessary. If you
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can anticipate who the other parties involved in the crisis
will designate as a spokesperson, use this information to
help craft your style of response.
Establish a Media Policy
A room in your companys offices should
be designated as the media room. This is
your controlled staging area for reporters
and where you can give your press
briefings. This room should be in a
completely different part of your office
complex from where your crisis
communications team, spokesperson,
executive and emergency operations are located. You do
not want the media wandering into one of these offices
because of a simple wrong turn. At the same time, dont
make the media feel isolated or hidden. This location is
something the team should decide in advance.
It should be required that members of the media are to be
escorted to the media room. Escorts should be chosen in
advance and should be pleasant but not offer any
information. Reporters may ask to speak to someone
other than the designated spokesperson, but that should
not be allowed. The spokesperson, back-up
spokesperson and technical experts should be the only
persons from your organization that give interviews or
discuss the issue with reporters. Controlling the flow of
information is a key element in managing a crisis!
In the process of a press briefing do your best to answer
the medias questions and provide them with the
resources you have offered. If a reporter wants an
unusual angle or has a special request for the story,
consider it carefully. However, be careful not to show any
special treatment to any one reporter.
Designate a media
room. Escort media
there, dont make
them feel isolated or
hidden from the
action.
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All calls from the media to your front office should be sent
to the public relations department, or to your designated
spokesperson. Your receptionist should absolutely
adhere to this rule.
Immediately Issue a Prepared Statement
By communicating immediately you establish yourself as
prepared, honest and ready to handle the situation. It
proves you are also in control of the information flow. The
best way to issue immediate communications is with a
prepared statement. Your first news release should
include a minimum of facts including the who, what, when
and where of the situation. If you have facts that you can
confirm include those as well. At this point your role as a
communicator is limited to this. Do not make the mistake
of exceeding that role. Include in your prepared
statement your concern for all involved, for your
employees and for your customers. A consumer
audience will remember the first and the last thing they
hear. Therefore at the beginning of a crisis you need to
make sure the first communications from you are the
facts, genuine concern and a resolve to get answers or
solve the problem.
As things progress and more information becomes
known, then develop prepared statements including these
new facts and have your spokesperson read this
statement at the press conference and before taking
questions from reporters. Such prepared statements can
be used over the phone for reporters who were not at the
briefing and they can be faxed or emailed upon request.
Modified Media Kits
A media kit is a tool box for the media to construct their
story. If you give them the tool box, give them your
approved information, your position statement and your
assessment of the situation. Many times this keeps
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reporters busy for the initial story and you may have
averted unnecessary investigations. If there is time,
modify your companys media kit to include your prepared
statements and news releases about the crisis and fact
sheets on the company, brochures and other pertinent
information like safety data and research studies.
In cases of highly technical issues, it may be necessary to
create some helpful sheets easily explaining research or
complicated systems and point out where the problem or
breakdown occurred. This can be a key action to limit
what reporters will misinterpret. You do not want
reporters interpreting anything!
If you have a visual prop like a photograph, video or
drawing, include that and point out where the problem
occurred. This type of information goes a long way
toward proving your honesty and prevents journalists from
seeking out much of this on their own where you are out
of control.
Helpful Tips For Press Conference Delivery
For prepared statements, use large type for easy
reading
Leave wide margins for making your notes
Practice from your typed script so you are familiar
with the notes you made
Practice aloud and with a team member
Never wing it.Never wing it!
Have a team member make sure the media room is
ready including; lights, microphone, visuals,
releases and media kits
Be confident and sincere in your delivery
Be compassionate and understanding
Have a time limit and stay within that time
Do not get into a confrontation remain calm
Stay with the issue at hand and your message
points
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Feel free to say I dont know, but I can find out for
you
Dont let one reporter dominate the questioning
Dont make jokes
Be sure to bridge to positive points
If you are asked two or more questions at once,
answer the one you want to and move on.
Know who will be attending in advance
Dont speculate on what if questions
Beware of the A or B dilemma the answer may
be neither
Dress conservatively and professionally
Avoid technical expressions or jargon
Internet Crisis Management
Rumors, true or not, spread faster than a wild fire on the
Internet. A disgruntled customer or client armed with a
computer and a chat room can plant a lie or propagate a
rumor about you or your company. Traveling at light
speed this can hurt your reputation or bring down a
product overnight.
Very soon after such chat and rumors spread, news
organizations can have the story. Gone are the days
when most news people took the time to fact check or
multi-source their story to prove its accuracy. Internet
news is even worse. Not only do they distribute news the
instant they get it, but they are rewarded when they do so.
So how do you control Internet rumors and maintain your
companys public image? Here are 10 proven guidelines
for surviving an Internet communications crisis.
1) Its not personal, its business. Its hard to shut
down the emotions when someone is overtly doing
you wrong, but you need to think logically at this
time and emotions will not help you do that. Try to
think like a consumer or client seeing or hearing this
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information. How would you like to see your favorite
company react?
2) Alert the crisis communications team you have
prepared in advance and gather your facts.
3) Be honest and up front with all reporters even the
cyber reporters via email.
4) Have your prepared statements and press releases
ready to hit the email distribution list as soon as you
have your company position and message points
established.
5) Dont email anything that you do not want to see in
print. You may have a leak or unhappy employee
and inter-office emails will be on a reporters desk in
minutes.
6) Be completely accessible to the media for as long
as the crisis exists. For small companies with voice
mail, make sure you have a method for reporters to
reach your spokesperson immediately.
7) Have your crisis team visit the chat rooms and
message boards and see what is being said. Use
this information to craft your position points and
responses. Resist the temptation to get into the
chat and defend your position.
8) Use both on-line and off-line clipping services to see
what is being said about your company. Internet
rumors are very fluid and your responses and
message points may need to be fluid as well.
9) Remember that anytime, anywhere you are
speaking with a reporter, you are being interviewed
even online.
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10) Place press releases and position statements on
your web site and in your press room. Be proactive
and positive in your statements. Do not be
defensive or reactionary.
Internet crisis situations can happen and grow at
lightening speed. While much of the management
techniques are the same, handling an Internet crisis
requires a few unique angles and cyber-savvy to contain.
In summary, in the midst of a crisis of communications,
the best policy is to tell it all, tell it fast and tell the truth!
Remember if you control the flow of information you are
miles ahead in controlling the crisis. To be effective you
must be willing to balance legal and public relations
issues. Being honest, compassionate and forthright will
many times be what an audience remembers about the
situation.
