Crisis communications is a constantly changing field. In his article, “The Evolution of Crisis Communication,” written for the latest Crisis Manager,Thomas E. Lee uses his experiences, both past and present, to create a list of five principles integral to crisis communications success in 2009. How are the rules different now, as opposed to ten years ago? Lee explains:
Armed with a Smart Phone, every citizen has become a source of news and information. Look no further than Janis Krums, the blogger who happened to be on the first ferry to arrive on the scene a few minutes after US Airways Flight 1549 had plunged into the Hudson River in New York City earlier this year. Within ten minutes of the crash, Krums had used Twitter (and Twitpic) to post a photo of the downed plane with news of the crash and distributed that information to tens of thousands of people. It was roughly 30 minutes before the first news crew was even on the scene.
Controlling “the message” today as a PR professional no longer means controlling the press. Since everyone who has access to a computer is now a viable news source, it is now virtually impossible to completely control the message. It is still possible, however, to mitigate the crisis and influence public opinion.
Although the rules may change, the fact remains the same – without effective communication, crisis management is impossible.
The BCM Blogging Team
https://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/