Category Archives: Corporate Issues Management
Just ask BP: Once an issue is owned, it’s owned for life
Well, if it wasn’t official before, it is now. British Petroleum (BP) officially is the sole owner of the worst environmental disaster in history. This may not seem like a terribly revealing take, given how much time America and the world spent last summer watching this catastrophe unfold. What is revealing is this: The report …
Has topic fatigue removed BP from the spotlight?
For all of us who work with or in the news media, topic fatigue is a simple reality of life in the information-saturated 21st century. Regardless of the degree to which a news story continues to have life, there is a point where the public simply gets sick of the topic. If any story was …
BP case study adds another reputation chapter
While the oil spill tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico certainly is nothing for which anyone would wish, it continues to provide a living and breathing crisis communications case study. Unfortunately for British Petroleum, it is a case study without positives for anyone. We have, on this blog, previously referenced problems that can arise when …
Crisis Communications: Competing Spokespeople and the CEO Rule
When a person, organization or company is publicly struggling with a crisis, the natural inclination of the news media and the public in general is to “pile on” with endless criticism. As someone who has spent a career working in or with the news media—either covering or managing the communications of hundreds of crises—I find …
What comes first, image or reputation?
“H-P … after acquisition spree … seeks to recast image to encompass a broader range of expertise.” (WSJ, March 11, 2010) The story itself wasn’t unusual. Company grows rapidly through acquisition of diverse organizations. The brand hangs onto its past image. Marketing isn’t keeping pace. Customers have limited views based on their singular relationships. Employees …
