Televangelist Pat Robertson is no stranger to controversy. Last month, though, the Christian Broadcasting Network founder, who is a regular in the media, really outdid himself. Known for delivering quotes which would cause any traditional businesses’ crisis management team to blow several blood vessels, his latest comments earned him one …
Carly Fiorina’s “Demon Sheep” ad, part of her campaign targeted at landing one of California’s Senate seats, is getting a lot of attention. Unfortunately for her, this type of attention usually means you’ll be spending a lot of time with your crisis management team. Here’s a sample of one reaction, …
The ball of sordid tales and blatant lies that makes up one-time vice presidential candidate John Edward’s personal life continues to unravel in the public eye, and with it goes a reputation and image which had been carefully pieced together through years of work. In an article for The Atlantic, …
How your company communicates with its staff, clients and customers defines whether they respond by rising up in unison to support the business, or instead spread gossip on coffee breaks, complain loudly and publicly, and turn to the competition for inspiration. Nowadays crisis communications are a proven concept and their …
A false Twitter post, sent out shortly after the Haiti earthquake, stating that American Airlines was offering free flights to the island, caused the company to be flooded with phone calls, emails and many, many Tweets. The problem was exacerbated when popular Tweeters, including film critic Roger Ebert, re-Tweeted the …
When 7,000 people sue you, there is a lot of crisis management in your future, even if you’re the U.S. Navy. The landmark lawsuit, which involves much of the population of Vieques, Puerto Rico, alleges that the six decades of weapons testing the Navy did there has caused residents to …
Toyota executives have been virtually silent amid a recall of millions of their cars because gas pedals can become dangerously stuck. For their customers, oh, what a feeling _ fear, frustration, confusion and anger. Since Tuesday, when the Japanese automaker said it would stop making and selling some of its …
Many organizations who had never before considered hiring a crisis management team are now scrambling to find one. Why is that? This quote from a Finance & Commerce article has the answer: The trend has been fueled by the national recession that spawned a plethora of business bankruptcies and corporate …
German car manufacturer Audi is playing with fire in their latest advertising campaign, which is acting as a lead-in to the premiere of their new Super Bowl commercial. The trouble? This quote from social media strategist Danny Brown’s blog explains: The campaign is based around a new creation called the …
The Ambush Interview is an interview in which an investigative reporter catches their subject off guard in hopes of causing them to make a mental error which the reporter can then exploit. In her article for the latest Crisis Manager newsletter, aptly titled “The Ambush Interview: Taming the Wild Animal,” …
From the moment the day begins, we are juggling work and our personal lives. Before we know it, we’re making snap decisions or we’re snapping at each other. When we don’t feel that we have the time or the need to get curious we can (1) get angry or defensive …
A new issue of Crisis Manager is up on the Bernstein Crisis Management website, and we have guest articles from two seasoned crisis management experts. The first, an excerpt from Nance Guilmartin’s book “The Power of Pause,” illustrates the challenges created by the rush of today’s pressured working environment. Following …
This is my first trial of the Twtpoll free polling service. Supposedly both the poll and results will show up here.
It’s time for Toyota to roll out the crisis management plan, as the Japanese automaker joins the recent string of manufacturers forced into massive product recalls. Here are the details, from a USAToday story: Last Thursday in the U.S., Toyota said it will recall 2.3 million Toyota-brand cars and trucks, …
Gathered in meeting rooms at universities and offices in four different countries, a flurry of typing, conversations, collaborations and snacks are powering an army of technology volunteers committed to helping the situation in Haiti. CrisisCamps, sponsored by CrisisCommons, are open, collaborative events that allow digital citizens to come together using …
