Wake Up Walmart!

Jonathan Bernstein crisis avoidance, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management 2 Comments

The products you choose to carry can create serious crisis management issues Walmart may want to put its buyers through some crisis management training after a couple of Halloween-related fails made headlines recently, starting with the retail giant being blasted for carrying a rubber  “Dead Dog Prop” made to look …

L.A.’s DWP – How NOT to Handle the Media

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, media crisis management, media relations, PR, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Communicating with media is a crucial crisis management skill Once upon a time, the thing to do when you came under scrutiny was batten down the hatches and avoid discussing the matter altogether. We’ve long since moved past that school of thought, but unfortunately many organizations insist on doing things …

Crisis Management Musts: Plan for Cyber Attacks

Erik Bernstein computer security, crisis avoidance, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, cyber threats, Cyberheist, cybersecurity, Erik Bernstein, hackers, hacking, internet crisis management, internet security, Jonathan Bernstein 1 Comment

It’s no longer a question of “if”, but “when” you will face an online attack Convinced your data is secure because you’re using a phrase password from your favorite book or movie, something like, “Call me Ishmael?” Think again! Ars Technica’s Dan Goodin reports: For the first time, the freely …

UM and Missoula Still Making Crisis Management Mistakes

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, higher ed, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, reputation management 1 Comment

Errors become far less forgivable when you make them time and time again… The University of Montana, and especially its football program, have been making negative news for a couple years now. In fact, there had been so many alleged sexual assaults and other misconduct by student athletes, and so …

Why You Shouldn’t Copy the “I Quit” Video

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, internet crisis management, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, online crisis management, online reputation management, PR, public relations, reputation management, social media, YouTube Leave a Comment

Immortalized online…but is it a good thing? The latest YouTube video to go viral features a young woman quitting her job in what most certainly is a creative manner, but was it a smart move? Let’s watch: Marina Shifrin is the woman in the video, and it was filmed at …

Crisis Management Lessons from Tsunami Study

Erik Bernstein crisis management, crisis planning, crisis preparation, crisis preparedness, Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, disaster crisis management, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein Leave a Comment

A reminder to plan for “rare, but predictable” crises If a monster earthquake struck off Alaska’s coast, tsunami waves would rush toward California, crippling the nation’s busiest port complex and flooding coastal communities, a report released Wednesday suggests. The potential impacts, based on a hypothetical magnitude-9.1 jolt off the Alaskan …

Crisis Management Musts: Media Trained Leadership

Erik Bernstein crisis communication, crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, media crisis management, media relations, media training, PR, public relations, reputation management, school crisis management, strategic reputation management Leave a Comment

If you’re not ready to be the face of your organization, don’t take the helm When you’re the face of your organization, you need to understand how to interact with the media. It doesn’t matter if you’re CEO of a corporation, captain of a football team, or, as in the …

AT&T Policy Fail During Crisis Management for Colorado

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, online crisis management, online reputation management, PR, public relations, reputation management, strategic reputation management Leave a Comment

Don’t let crises for your customers create more problems for you Refusal, or inability, to flex with circumstances is a surefire way to land your organization in need of crisis management, and recently our colleague Phil Cox brought a situation to our attention that really hammers this point home. Juliette …

Business Insider CTO Canned Over Twitter Posts

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, Erik Bernstein, internet crisis management, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management, social media, social media crisis management, social media reputation management, strategic reputation management, Twitter Leave a Comment

Not watching what you say and do on social media can cost you dearly Last week, Business Insider CTO Pax Dickinson joined the continuously swelling ranks of those who have lost their jobs because of careless social media use. Dickinson was (quite understandably) canned the day after being called out …

The Next Generation of Crisis Communication Pros

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, internet crisis management, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, online crisis management, online reputation management, PR, public relations, reputation management, social media, social media crisis management, social media reputation management Leave a Comment

Newcomers to the field bring hunger, fresh perspective Graduates of communications programs are leaving school more prepared than ever to do the daily work required to excel in the fields of PR and crisis management. Of course, a student’s thesis is where they really get to flex the mental muscle …

Hotel Guest Sued over Tripadvisor Review

Erik Bernstein crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, internet crisis management, internet reputation management, Jonathan Bernstein, online crisis management, online reputation management, PR, public relations, reputation management, social media, social media crisis management, social media reputation management Leave a Comment

Can you be punished for writing a negative online review? In a suit that reputation management and hotel industry professionals alike will be following closely, a Quebec-area hotel is suing a former guest over a negative Tripadvisor review. Allegedly, Laurent Azoulay and his son checked into the four-star hotel, only …

Foot (Paw?) in Mouth Crisis Management from Chinese Zoo

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, Crisis Prevention, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, media training, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Don’t make this major crisis management mistake A Chinese zoo has been accused of attempting to fool visitors by placing various not-so-exotic animals in cages marked for wild animals. In the most egregious offense, a Tibetan mastiff was passed off as a lion…at least until it began to bark. CNN …

Yosemite Rim Fire Demonstrates Indirect Impact of a Disaster

Jonathan Bernstein crisis avoidance, crisis management, crisis planning, crisis preparedness, Crisis Prevention, Crisis Response, disaster crisis management, Jonathan Bernstein Leave a Comment

A harsh reminder of the need to be prepared as individuals and organizations The Yosemite Rim Fire, more than 15,000 acres and barely 15% contained, is demonstrating the crisis management adage that you don’t have to be in the direct path of a natural disaster to be negatively impacted by …

Crisis Management Advice for Apple after e-Book Injunction

Erik Bernstein crisis communications, crisis management, crisis public relations, Crisis Response, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management Leave a Comment

Zero reputation management and a lack of ethics collide once again Apple has found itself on the losing side of quite a few legal cases over the past couple years, cases which have exposed the fact that the company isn’t shy about bending, or outright breaking, the rules when there’s …

Is Rude the New Norm?

Erik Bernstein crisis communication, crisis management, crisis management tactics, crisis planning, Crisis Prevention, Erik Bernstein, Jonathan Bernstein, PR, public relations, reputation management, strategic reputation management Leave a Comment

Take the opportunity to stand out from the crowd According to a new study from Weber Shandwick, Powell Tate and KRC Research, incivility is America has reached “crisis proportions.” A full 43% of respondents EXPECTED to experienced incivility within the next 24 hours, and the average number of times those …