RSSCrisisCommunications

‘Bon Appetit’ burned for saying grillmaster and CEO are men’s jobs

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:58:07 GMT

Bust.com called it “lazy sexism.” Jezebel referred to it as “tired, gendered” BS.

Bon Appetit magazine is calling it a mea culpa.

The introduction to a collection of videos called “Dudes Grilling Things” had some readers up in arms about this paragraph, which blog The Braiser catalogued before it was changed:

“It’s a cliche because it’s true: men like grilling things. Women like grilling things too, of course, but at this point in history, grilling, like crying about sports and being a Fortune 500 CEO, is firmly located in the domain of Dude.”

Some, such as CNN Eatocracy editor Kat Kinsman, took offense at the idea that grilling is chiefly an activity for men. She also said the Fortune 500 line “feels like a burn rather than tickle.”

Bon Appetit editor Adam Rapoport took the criticism to heart, replying: “Humor is a fine line to be walked. Sometimes a writer trips.” Rapoport also said Bon Appetit’s Web team inadvertently featured only men in the collection of grilling videos.

Bon Appetit attempted to pick itself back up, removing the Fortune 500 crack and replacing it with “[inadvertently sexist attempt at humor deleted].” The magazine also appended an apologetic editor’s note to the piece.

“We in no way meant to imply that women aren't just as masterful at the grill,” the note says, offering links to other articles which prominently feature women grilling.

[RELATED: Hear how top companies adapted to the digital PR industry changes at this August event.]

Although Kinsman was able to come to peace with Rapoport and Bon Appetit, some commentators weren’t satisfied with the magazine’s attempt to make amends. Jezebel’s Laura Beck called it a “non-apology.”

“That was a true ‘How can I be racist? Look at all my black friends!’ moment, right there,” she wrote.

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15 job openings in the PR and marketing world

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:57:47 GMT

Cheap denim blue jeans.

A bad spray tan.

Poorly dyed hair.

Sometimes, it’s worth opening up that wallet a little wider if it means getting lasting color that won’t fade or run.

Then again, it apparently sometimes pays to let those colors run, as is the case for The Color Run’s new online marketing manager. The organizer behind the multi-city 5K races of happy hues is seeking someone to help it paint the planet by driving its digital advertising strategy and tracking its online metrics.

So, make like cool and get to running right here for all the details on how to apply.

Not the job for you? See what else we have in our weekly professional pickings:

Brand creative manager—Chick-fil-A

Electronic communications coordinator—Butler University

Public relations director—Getty Images

Assistant media manager—VML

Marketing specialist, digital—DeVry

Creative services writer—West Interactive Corp.

Marketing communications associate—JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Event marketing specialist—United Way of Metropolitan Dallas

Director of communications—Prudential

Marketing manager—Cisco

Communications intern—Intel

Director, ecommerce marketing—Under Armour

Social media manager—PepsiCo

Associate brand manager—Pizza Hut

If you have a job you would like to see highlighted on PR Daily, please email me or send me a message on Twitter @iquotesometimes.

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7-Eleven targeted in massive immigration and employment sting

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:45:39 GMT

7-Eleven franchises in Virginia and New York are under federal investigation for employing as many as 50 undocumented immigrants who were working under identities stolen from U.S. citizens, including children and dead people, The New York Times reports.

Feds raided 14 stores on Long Island and in Virginia and arrested nine managers for taking in more than $180 million under the system. Employees worked up to 100 hours per week, were forced to live in houses owned by the franchisees, and weren’t paid for all their work time. Some employees had been working under those conditions for more than a decade.

As many as 40 other franchises in states including Illiniois, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania are under investigation. Prosecutors are calling it a “modern-day plantation system.”

Authorities say these practices flew under the radar because 7-Eleven’s corporate overseers simply didn’t have a system in place to prevent it. Two employees in different stores were working under the same Social Security number, for instance.

7-Eleven released a statement from Director of Corporate Communications Margaret Chabris, in which the company pledged to cooperate with the federal investigation and said it “will take aggressive actions to audit the employment status of all its franchisees' employees.”

She continued, “7-Eleven Inc. is taking steps to assume corporate operation of the stores involved in this action so we can continue to serve our guests.”

[RELATED: Hear powerful case studies from Coca-Cola Co., Walmart, and Whole Foods Market in October at Microsoft's HQ.]

The company is keeping quiet otherwise. Its most recent posts on Facebook and Twitter are Father’s Day related, and its most recent press release is a June 10 notice about a free tea promotion.

There doesn’t seem to be a huge contingent of Facebook users clamoring about the raids—at least not yet. Most of the recent posts to 7-Eleven’s wall are about Slurpees and Big Gulps. Only two posts mention news of the raids, and they’re simply describing what happened, not lambasting the brand.

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Fighting the fallout from a fast-food fail

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:53:02 GMT

For an industry built on convenience, the fast-food sector lately has been anything but convenient for many PR professionals. Instead, a recent outbreak of fast-food fails has been occupying much of the time of those working on behalf of Wendy’s, Taco Bell, Burger King, and other familiar brand-name chains.

Whether the source of the situation is an unhappy customer airing a gripe, as was the case last week at Dunkin’ Donuts, or a wayward employee acting up on camera, such as the infamous 2009 incident involving two Domino’s staffers, social media channels now allow for every transgression to be witnessed by millions of people before the day is out. This creates an increasingly difficult challenge for the public relations people who are responsible for protecting the images of fast-food brands, but it also provides them a powerful platform with which to work.

“In a crisis situation, brands need to react quickly,” says Heather Whaling, president of Geben Communication in Columbus, Ohio. “In social, if you’re not quick, you’re not relevant. Particularly when food prep and sanitation is involved, the companies need to swiftly demonstrate that that kind of behavior is not tolerated and atypical. The good news is that social media provides a very public forum for brands to convey how seriously they take these issues and the steps being implemented to protect customers.”

With that advice in mind, let’s take a look at five recent fast-food fails, the role social media has played in all of them, and how the brands involved have responded.

Papa John’s driver delivers a racist rant

Not entirely unfamiliar with the situation, Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter issued public apologies on Facebook and Twitter to a customer in Sanford, Fla., after a delivery driver for the pizza chain inadvertently left a racist message on the customer’s voice mail. The driver’s own cell phone accidently redialed the customer when the driver sat back down in his car after delivering an order, and the driver’s ensuing rant to a co-worker in the car about the size of tips he receives from African-Americans in Sanford was recorded on the customer’s voice mail.

The recording lasted nearly four minutes and included racist slurs being spoken and at times sung by the driver, along with laughter from his passenger. The customer posted the recording on YouTube, and it went viral, creating an incendiary public relations crisis for the company. Schnatter used social media outlets to say that he also personally reached out to the customer and offered his “heartfelt apologies” to the family and the Sanford community as a whole. He also confirmed that both employees had been terminated as a result of the incident.

“The best thing brands can do in these types of situations is to get out in front of these crises aggressively and take swift action with the employees,” offers Arik Hanson, principal of ACH Communications, a digital marketing and PR consultancy based in Minneapolis.

[RELATED: Master the can't-ignore social media tools after Mark Ragan's one-day social media boot camp.]

Taco Bell’s image takes a licking

A California employee of the largest Mexican fast-food chain in the U.S. was photographed licking a stack of taco shells in March, reportedly as part of a company photo contest to show how much employees were enjoying the new line of Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos. Though never submitted for the contest, the photo found its way onto the employee’s personal Facebook page, and it went viral, creating a sticky situation for the brand.

Taco Bell issued multiple statements, the first of which explained that the shells in the photograph were never meant for public consumption and used only for employee training before being discarded. That alone did little to quell the public’s outrage when the photo first circulated early this month, so the company released another statement saying it was terminating the employee for violating social media and food-handling policies, despite the fact that “we do not believe (he) harmed or intended to harm anyone, but we deplore the impression this has caused for our customers, fans, franchisees, and team members.”

“If someone breaks the rules, the policy should make the consequences clear,” Ramonna Robinson, president of Denver PR firm Ground Floor Media, recently blogged. “This provides companies with an easy answer and a clear reason to terminate when employees post things on social media like putting pizza up their nose or licking taco shells in the restaurant’s kitchen – just in case those acts alone don’t violate company policy.”

A close shave for Burger King

A female customer bit into her burger from the iconic chain this month, only to find a razor blade laying flat on its side between the meat and a slice of cheese. She was thankfully not injured but understandably shaken, and the ensuing investigation has ruled out the possibility of foul play and instead revealed inadequate employee-training practices used by the franchisee in Willits, Calif. The razor blades, used for cleaning purposes, are kept in the same area where some of the food preparation takes place, and a loose blade found its way onto the woman’s burger.

News of the incident, which took place on June 2, was initially slow to make the rounds on the Internet, but it has since gone viral and prompted the following comment from Burger King:

“Food safety is a top priority for Burger King restaurant globally. Burger King Corp.’s strict food-handling procedures clearly outline that razor blades are not permitted in or near food preparation areas at any time.”

Wendy’s employee apparently missed the Taco Bell story

Fast-food brand executives must be longing for a time when most people didn’t have pocket-size cameras at the ready, because no sooner had Taco Bell’s licking incident begun to quiet down when another pair of employees pulled a similar stunt at an undisclosed Wendy’s location. The photograph, presumably taken by one employee, shows another uniformed employee helping himself to a Frosty milkshake by bending down to ground level and distributing the contents of the ice cream dispenser into his open mouth.

The photo was originally posted Wednesday on Reddit, where it gained overnight success and had found its way onto Business Insider and The Consumerist by Thursday morning. Wendy’s was still looking into the incident as of late Friday, and it had issued an initial statement that said, “The incident was totally inappropriate, and we’re taking it very seriously.”

Both the Wendy’s and Taco Bell incidents mirrored the one mentioned above that Domino’s executives faced several years ago, and that company’s swift reaction still serves as a shining example of crisis communications in the digital age.

“The very best example of what to do is what Domino’s did in 2009,” says Gini Dietrich, founder and CEO of Arment Dietrich in Chicago. “Employees posted a video on YouTube of them sneezing onto and doing other disgusting things to food and then serving it to customers. [Domino’s president Patrick Doyle] recorded a video apologizing and posted it in the same spot you’d find the employees’ video. Then the franchisee did the same thing. The video was then circulated through their social networks and posted on their website. The apologies were genuine and transparent. When companies find themselves in these situations—and it’s pretty common a restaurant will—they should look to Domino’s.”

Denny’s NSA tweet under scrutiny

The only employees who could be blamed if restaurant chain Denny’s finds itself in hot water over a tweet it sent on Tuesday are perhaps members of the corporate marketing department. The company, which is an active if not aggressive user of multiple social media outlets, decided to poke some fun at the White House by posting a promotional message that made a reference to the recent NSA spying scandal.

The message read: “Denny’s knows what you crave before they do,” and showed a photograph of a computer with a monitor, screen, and keyboard, referring to the U.S. government’s now well-publicized and much-debated PRISM program involving the reported monitoring of Internet and email use.

Technology website Mashable reprinted the tweet later in the week and asked readers their opinion of the brazen message, pointing out that few if any other brands had dared to go there—“there” being the NSA spying scandal—in their social media marketing efforts. Mashable also pointed out that Denny’s did not repeat the message on its Facebook page.

This fifth and final fast-food fail, if it can even accurately be called that, is a good example of how social media is an infinitely powerful tool that can work both for and against brands depending on how effectively they utilize it. When it comes to responding to situations such as the ones above, however, there is really only one strategy that stands a chance.

“A social media crisis isn’t any different than one that would have happened 10 years ago without the social networks,” says Dietrich. “You will feel pain for a day. You will be the butt of jokes. It’s in how you handle it that makes or breaks you. First, get out there and tell your side of the story before someone else does. Accompany it with these words, ‘I’m sorry,’ and mean it. Tell people what you’re going to do to fix it and make it happen. Then spend the rest of the time listening, not getting defensive, and letting the story die.

“The good news,” she adds, “is someone else will screw up tomorrow and you’ll be old news.”

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Colorado fighting fire with social media

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:52:17 GMT

With devastating forest fires raging in communities across the state, Colorado residents turned to social media for the latest information.

As traditional media—newspapers and television—are doing their best to be a clearinghouse of information, social media has made it easier for people to get real-time information, without any filters or time delays, direct from sources.

Colorado had a dry run for this year’s fires last summer, when the state was again hit by blazes. At the time, law enforcement agencies had to change the way they communicated the news. The Jefferson County Sheriff's office used its blog and Twitter to keep the public and the press updated about the Lower North Fork fire last March.

"The world has changed,” sheriff's spokesman Mark Techmeyer told the Denver Post. "Traditionally, you had a press conference in the morning and the afternoon, but people won't settle for that now. Our protocol is to make the emergency blog live and then a tweet goes out to link back to the blog. The speed and accuracy cannot be matched with a written press release and a press conference in three hours—those days are gone."

Every local, state and federal agency is pushing out the latest news on their Twitter accounts. The most destructive fire, just north of Colorado Springs was tagged #BlackForestFire.

Some of the best sources for getting information about this fire and others across the state are:

• El Paso County Sheriff: @EPCSheriff
• Colorado Springs Police Department: ‏@CSPDPIO
• Colorado Springs Fire Department: @CSFDPIO
• Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control: @COStateFire
• Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper: @hickforco
• Pikes Peak Red Cross: ‏@PPRedCross
• Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management: @COEmergency

A great example of the how the agencies are using social media are the quick updates by the Colorado Springs PD. On Sunday morning, it sent this out:

12 p.m. Press Conference #BlackForestFire 3,600 homes unaffected, 482 destroyed, 17 partial. -65% contained -The... http://t.co/beavT9Zytc
— Springs Police (@CSPDPIO) June 16, 2013

It details the punch-list of vital information, including a link to an accounting of all the homes destroyed in the blaze.

[RELATED: Master the can't-ignore social media tools after Mark Ragan's one-day social media boot camp.]

When it began to rain on Sunday in the area of the Black Forest fire, residents took to social media with comments and photos. Throughout the week, you could get an insider look at the firefighting efforts and the devastation through Instagram, using the #BlackForestFire tag.

Social media also served as a complaint board for some residents affected by the fires. One family that lost its home called to cancel its DirecTV service; they were promptly informed they were still on the hook for the burned satellite dish and other equipment.

News got out and spread on Twitter and DirecTV’s Facebook page, and the next day DirecTV apologized, saying it was a mistake.

Donna Archuleta Volden said, “Instead of all this you should be posting a retraction and stating publicly that you will not be taking advantage of the folks in the Black Forest area.”

Gil Rudawsky heads the crisis communication and issues management practice at GroundFloor Media in Denver. He is a former reporter and editor. Read his blog or contact him at grudawsky@groundfloormedia.com.

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How to deal with PR’s sweatiest moments

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:49:04 GMT

Public relations is a stressful industry, but some moments are clearly more “sweat worthy” than others. It’s these moments, though, that really keep PR pros on their feet and teach invaluable lessons.

After chatting with colleagues, I came up with some of the most sweat-worthy PR moments folks have dealt with, along with tips for overcoming them:

Late, late, late. While pitching a prospective client in suburban Atlanta, we got lost on the way to the office and were about a half-hour late to meet with C-level execs. The busy prospects glared at us through the meeting and cut us off early to show their displeasure. (Needless to say, we didn’t win the business.) If you’re unfamiliar with an area, consider doing a “dry-run,” including driving to the prospect’s office. Even the best GPS isn’t infallible.

Conference line conundrum. For a top-tier reporter interview with one of my clients, I circulated our conference line details without double-checking with the rest of my team to confirm the line’s availability. Six other team members ended up dialing in accidentally for a totally unrelated call, some even scolding me for not double-checking. Always check to make sure the conference line is free.

Promoting the “awkward” product. While pitching an “adult diaper” client, I was asked—in mixed company—my impressions of having “tried it out myself.” Oh, the discomfort! If you find yourself in a similar position, I recommend you take a deep breath and just go with it, despite the embarrassment; just keep it clinical and professional.

[RELATED: Ragan's new distance-learning site houses the most comprehensive video training library for corporate communicators.]

The forgotten presentation. When I worked at a previous agency, we were a finalist for a large account. We were even told that we were the clear favorites after the first round. The final presentation was to be mid-afternoon at the company’s HQ, so our team spent the morning and afternoon rehearsing, casually having lunch, and then heading to the office only to realize we had forgotten our presentation. We tried going with it, as though we’d always intended to present this way, but that didn’t fly. Since then, I’ve always made sure we have backup and more backup (sending via email, on extra thumb drives, saving in the cloud).

The speechless spokesperson. After coordinating a call with a reporter and a client, briefing the client as usual and confirming journalists’ questions, I got on the conference line and the client spokesperson went mute. He wasn’t able to answer any questions. It was clear the reporter was getting upset. Luckily, I was familiar enough with the issues to jump in with answers, and on those I wasn’t, I steered things in another direction. The lesson is this: Don’t take anything for granted, and for phoners, make a “cheat sheet.”

What’s your most sweat-worthy PR moment? Please share in the comments section.

Kaitlyn Kotlowski is a senior account executive at Crenshaw Communications. A version of this story first appeared on the agency's blog, PR Fish Bowl.

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Chicago sports apparel maker pulls T-shirt countering ‘Boston strong’ slogan

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:46:22 GMT

Hardcore fans sometimes say that all’s fair in love and sports, but the Chicago sports apparel maker Cubby Tees may have taken things too far.

Until last Friday, the company was selling a T-shirt that included a part of the Chicago Blackhawks logo and the phrase, “Chicago stronger.” The shirt was a reference to the “Boston strong” slogan that became a rallying cry for the Massachusetts city after the April bombings at the Boston Marathon.

The Blackhawks are playing the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup finals.

The website Boston Sports Then and Now collected just a few of the angry tweets directed at Cubby Tees and at Chicago sports fans. The words “disrespectful” and “classless” were used.

Chicago Now’s Ted Gruber called on Cubby Tees to “remove the shirt and have an ounce of respect for those people.”

Cubby Tees did, but not without a fight. In a lengthy blog post on its website, Cubby Tees said it endured a “good new-fashioned Twitter lynching” and was taking action that appeared to “bow to bullying.”

[RELATED: Learn how companies like NASCAR drive engagement with content marketing at Ragan’s Content Summit.]

It continues:

“Anyone who believes that the ‘Chicago Stronger’ shirt mocked those injured in the horrible events of Patriots’ Day seems to be desperately looking for insult and to have regrettably missed the point expressed in our commentary. Nowhere on the shirt’s face (or within its subtext or motivation) did we take aim at the victims or make light of the incident — nor would we ever.”

The Cubby Tees website included (before the product was pulled) a description of the shirt that stated that the “Boston Strong” motto had been co-opted by Boston sports fans and that the Chicago company “couldn’t stomach this use of the nation’s sympathy or believe the homicidal lunacy of two disturbed locals has rendered its teams invincible.”

At the risk of editorializing, a T-shirt shouldn’t require that much explanation.

Over the weekend, Cubby Tees updated its explanation post with an FAQ of sorts, in which it states in no uncertain terms it has no regrets.

“This is a site that sells sports tee shirts,” it states. “We promoted one team while taking umbrage with the behavior of another team’s fans in the context of sports – we’ve done it before, we’ll do it again.”

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The 5 most popular stories on PR Daily this week

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:48:24 GMT

Here are the five most widely read stories this week on PR Daily:

20 pieces of advice every young professional should follow

What 9 Internet trends mean for PR

The best—and worst—times to post to social media

9 non-PR skills every PR professional needs

Marketing agencies will disappear in 10 years, study says

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HGTV’s American-flag ‘tablecloth’ draws outrage

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:47:55 GMT

In a segment about table settings for the Fourth of July, an article on Home and Garden Television’s website suggested that an American flag would make “a bright and festive table runner.” The article even noted the flag should be nylon to avoid staining from spills, so the flag could be flown later.

The result? Bombs bursting in air, so to speak.

“It's Flag Day,” one commenter wrote on HGTV’s Facebook page. “Let me guess - HGTV is going to celebrate by burning one today?”

Quite a few of the recent comments on HGTV’s Facebook page lash out at the cable network over the flag suggestion, which hit Fox News Radio on Wednesday and then spread to Gawker and other sites.

Gawker caught this comment about the suggestion: “No one dies for a table cloth.”

HGTV apologized in a Facebook post, saying:

“This was a regrettable use of our flag and it never should have happened. We sincerely apologize and have removed the post from our website. We want to assure our fans that HGTV is proud of the American flag and everything it symbolizes for our people.”

The original post on HGTV’s website suggesting the flag tablecloth appears to have been taken down.

[RELATED: Hear how top companies adapted to the digital PR industry changes at this August event.]

HGTV’s Facebook apology earned more than 2,200 “likes,” though quite a few of the nearly 800 commenters who replied didn’t seem satisfied.

“While I appreciate your willingness to apologize after so many Americans pointed out your mistake, I am still more than disappointed that you weren't knowledgeable enough before the fact,” said one commenter.

Others took the opportunity to offer additional gripes.

“I can accept their apology for this one, but what I can't accept or stomach, are endless endless reruns of ‘Love it Or List It,’” one person chimed in. “God I'm sick of that show. What happened to Candice Olsen or Sarah Richardson?”

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Wendy’s employee’s ice-cream antics exposed on Reddit

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:45:30 GMT

I’ve never worked in the fast-food industry, but if I had, the chances of my doing something disgusting, taking a photo of it, and posting it on the Internet would be zero. Sadly, too many fast-food restaurant employees do not share my towering moral standards.

I’m surprised there isn’t a subreddit yet for gross fast-food photos, such as the one of the Taco Bell employee licking a stack of taco shells. Now it’s a Wendy’s employee, who was so hungry for the store’s delicious soft serve that he kneeled below the machine and pulled what can only be referred to as a “Pauly Shore”:

Every time one of these things goes viral, the company has to respond with some asinine statement denouncing the behavior, along with the proclamation that it’s launching an investigation.

[RELATED: Hear how top companies adapted to the digital PR industry changes at this August event.]

Wendy’s hasn’t released one yet, but rest assured that it will read something like this: “At Wendy’s we hold ourselves and our employees to the highest standards. We are aware of a photo circulating online that depicts an employee using company property in an inappropriate manner. We apologize, and will take steps to rectify the situation.”

A better, more human statement might read: “We know—it’s gross. But when you employ legions of teenagers, you’re going to get a few bad apples in the mix. We’ll find this dopey S.O.B. and fire him and tell our franchisees not to hire idiots, but let’s face it—teenagers do stupid stuff.”

But alas, gird yourself instead for some corporate blather-laden speech from Wendy’s.

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Following NSA leak, Booz Allen must reassure its clients

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 13:45:48 GMT

When I jumped from the newsroom to the world of crisis communication, I consciously and resolutely gave up the principle of the public’s right to know.

I regularly get client information that would make front-page news. It’s the nature of what crisis communicators do, and upholding clients’ trust and keeping secrets give us ongoing credibility and ensure we’ll be kept on as trusted advisors.

But are there circumstances in which confidential information must be leaked in the interest of public good? And what do you do when you have a rogue employee who violates well-established nondisclosure rules and blabs client secrets to the media?

Enter Booz Allen Hamilton staffer Edward Snowden. The 29-year-old employee, who started his job with the firm just three months earlier, took responsibility for an international media storm by leaking top-secret documents outlining the NSA’s surveillance of Americans and foreigners. The NSA hired Booz Allen Hamilton as a contractor, and, in fact, most of its business comes from government contracts.

It’s a worst-case scenario for Booz Allen and brings into question the firm’s security measures, hiring practices, and overall credibility. To the firm’s credit, it promptly fired Snowden and expressed appropriate outrage.

“News reports that this individual has claimed to have leaked classified information are shocking, and, if accurate, this action represents a grave violation of the code of conduct and core values of our firm,” its statement reads. “We will work closely with our clients and authorities in their investigation of this matter.”

The statement, though well crafted, didn’t stop the online outrage against Booz Allen:

Booz Allen's new PR campaign: "Trust us with your secrets! Out of 26,000 employees, only one had a conscience, and we just fired him!"
— Clay Shirky (@cshirky) June 10, 2013

Booz Allen is advertising 453 job postings that include the phrase "top secret clearance" goo.gl/eUS5t
— T.J. Ortenzi (@tjortenzi) June 11, 2013

Who placed him there? HS dropout w no relevant coursework. There only months. Booz Allen: Snowden's salary $122,000 livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/booz-all…
— Sarah Steiner (@Sarahgoat) June 11, 2013

We have to assume that Snowden weighed the consequences of the leak, knowing that it would wipe out any future employment opportunities and would damage Booz Allen Hamilton’s reputation and business for years to come. Plus, he faces a future living in Iceland to avoid prosecution.

[RELATED: Hear how top companies adapted to the digital PR industry changes at this August event.]

For Booz Allen, the leak means it will have to overhaul its hiring process and show the public and its government clients that this is indeed an isolated incident. Firing Snowden is only the first step.

Booz Allen must first and foremost reassure its clients that their secrets are safe. Plus there’s going to be a trickle-down for other consulting firms dealing with sensitive government secrets. The U.S. government is likely to conduct an audit of its external contractors, as well as examining its reliance on outside firms.

Any informed observer has to realize that clients, including the government, keep secrets and that often times the less the public knows, the better. Regarding the Snowden leak, is anyone truly surprised—other than the media—that the U.S. government is reviewing phone records as part of a national security program?

For Booz Allen, it can’t be a matter of degree. A leak is a leak—and that must be addressed. Its business depends on it.

Gil Rudawsky heads the crisis communication and issues management practice at GroundFloor Media in Denver. He is a former reporter and editor. Read his blog or contact him at grudawsky@groundfloormedia.com.

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Does a nasty customer’s video help or hurt Dunkin’ Donuts?

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 13:45:19 GMT

If you dislike rudeness, profanity, or racial slurs, you should probably avoid this video that a Dunkin’ Donuts customer made, and which was posted to Consumerist and other sites Monday.

The customer, who starts the video by telling the cashier that he is “under video surveillance,” complains that she didn’t get a receipt the night before, and then she demands a free order. Dunkin’ Donuts’ policy is to give customers their current order for free if they don’t get a receipt; the customer says she was told to come back the next day.

The customer asks for items she didn’t order the night before, talks to uncomfortable fellow customers, and berates the cashier, who stays calm and helpful throughout. He even agrees to give the customer her order for free. Much of the criticism of the video has centered on the rude customer, who also turns the camera to show herself, but Dunkin’ Donuts is certainly caught in the fray.

Jonathan Bernstein of Bernstein Crisis Management says the customer’s rant certainly doesn’t hurt the brand, however.

[RELATED: Learn how companies like NASCAR drive engagement with content marketing at Ragan’s Content Summit.]

“Customers like this are actually the easiest type of criticism to manage, because when they rant like this they completely undermine their own credibility,” he says. “Dunkin' Donuts' reputation wasn't harmed, and they need not respond further.”

Gerald Baron, principal at Agincourt Strategies, agrees that the brand, which hasn’t publicly responded to the video, should probably stay above it, though the company should “monitor it closely because probably someone who had a bad experience will chime in with nasties about the company.”

“If they do say anything, it should be along the lines of, ‘We want to express our appreciation to our valued employees who in this case, as they do so many times a day, treated a troubled customer with respect, care, and dignity,’” Baron suggests.

He adds that this particular video, which includes mentions of specific products, such as the strawberry Coolata (and which Dunkin’ Donuts didn’t have to pay for), could be a blessing in disguise.

“Everyone is trying to figure out how to create content that will go viral,” Baron says. “In this case, the rather obviously ill woman created that content for them.”

UPDATE: The company responded to the video Wednesday, but not directly to the customer who made it, instead, it'll be honoring the employee she berated, Gawker reports.

"We believe this is a powerful example of great customer service and the respect our crew members have for our guests," the company said in a statement. "The franchise owner of the restaurant has reached out to the crew member privately to express and demonstrate his personal appreciation."

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Twitter grousing leads to Cubs player’s indefinite suspension

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 13:55:50 GMT

Hampered by injuries to his wrist and leg, former Cubs infielder Ian Stewart has spent most of this season in the minor leagues. His obviously healthy typing fingers may have done even more damage to his career, though.

When a fan on Twitter congratulated him for a good game Monday and asked when the Cubs might call him back up to the majors, Stewart responded, “Probably never.”

According to Sports Illustrated, Stewart, whose Twitter account has apparently been deleted, offered this explanation: “I meant they might as well release since I have no shot of a call up….let me sign elsewhere.”

Mashable logged this tweet as well, in response to a fan who asked Stewart why he doesn’t just quit: “Why would I quit? I'm making 2 mill in AAA like u would give that up by quitting.” Stewart went on to retweet someone who said the Cubs had “terrible leadership,” and said he didn’t think Cubs manager Dale Sveum liked him.

[RELATED: Master the can't-ignore social media tools after Mark Ragan's one day social media boot camp.]

For the Cubs’ part, team President Theo Epstein said he wishes Stewart the best, but that the team had to take disciplinary action.

“It’s pretty obvious that it’s not appropriate to criticize your manager in your organization on Twitter,” he told the Chicago Tribune.

Stewart’s agent also pushed for a release from the team Tuesday. A release would mean the Cubs would at least have to pay off a part of Stewart’s $2 million contract, and he’d become a free agent.

Mashable writer Sam Laird suggests that neither party—Stewart or the Cubs—will come out of this situation unscathed.

“On one hand, his public anger is counterproductive to the Cubs, embarrassing for the club and sets a terrible example for younger teammates,” he wrote. “On the other, however, nothing he said was obscene or all that over the top.”

What do you think? Does the punishment fit the Twitter crime?

(Image via)

Whole Foods responds to ‘English-only' flap

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:45:35 GMT

Whole Foods is working to recover from a PR brouhaha. Two workers in Albuquerque claim that they were suspended from their jobs at the grocery chain because they were speaking Spanish on the job.

Whole Foods spokeswoman Libba Letton has denied their claim, saying instead that the employees were suspended for being “rude and disrespectful.” However, in a statement to the Associated Press, Ben Friedland, Whole Foods Market Rocky Mountain Region executive marketing coordinator basically said it’s company policy to have workers speak English during work hours, saying the company supports “having a uniform form of communication."

The company posted the following bilingual statement on their website:

“Our policy is that the default language is English, for consistent communication, inclusion, and especially for safety and emergency situations. We want our team members to use their judgment about when it’s appropriate to speak other languages. We are proud of our multilingual team members and try to work with customers in other languages whenever needed!

“The facts are: two team members in New Mexico became upset when they believed they were told in a team meeting they could not speak Spanish at work. That was not what was communicated. They were suspended with pay due to rude and disrespectful behavior. Their suspension was due to their behavior alone, not for speaking Spanish.”

So, workers were suspended because they got upset when they thought they were being told they couldn’t speak Spanish at work. Whatever the language, it seems semantics are at the core of this argument.

ProgressNow New Mexico, a local grassroots organization, is calling for a boycott of the chain, and it posted on its website:

“(Whole Foods’) policies prohibiting employees from speaking their own language or organizing to overturn these anti-diversity policies directly contradict their commitment to ‘team member excellence and happiness.’”

It includes a link to a MoveOn.org petition.

The New Mexico League of United Latin American Citizens is also threatening to launch a nationwide boycott unless it changes its policy—fast.

New Mexico has protections for Spanish speakers in its state constitution, according to the Albuquerque Journal.

RELATED: Hear powerful case studies from The Coca-Cola Company, Walmart and Whole Foods Market in October at Microsoft's HQ.

With the pressure on, Verizon shares nothing

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:49:10 GMT

Executive spin doctors for telecommunications giant Verizon found themselves between the proverbial rock and a hard place after news broke that the company had released customer data to the U.S. government as part of an ongoing counterterrorism effort by the National Security Agency.

The Internet and blogosphere buzzed with angry Facebook posts and tweets about Verizon’s “Share Everything” marketing campaign, but the company’s PR efforts during the peak of the crisis has more closely resembled “Do Nothing.”

So far, the strategy has worked surprisingly well.

It’s now been nearly a day-and-a-half since The Guardian’s Glenn Greenwald broke the news Wednesday night that Verizon had received a top-secret court order from the NSA back in April, demanding daily records on all telephone calls by tens of millions of Verizon customers within the United States and from foreign countries into the U.S.

By Thursday morning, thousands of infuriated customers had taken to Twitter and Verizon’s Facebook page to express their outrage, making threats ranging from the discontinuation of their service to the filing of lawsuits against the company.

Many in the PR industry took special interest in seeing how one of their own would handle an emerging crisis of such epic proportions, only to be somewhat disappointed by Verizon’s lack of action. The corporation has remained all but silent, legally forbidden by the court order to disclose to the public either the existence of the government’s request for its customers’ records or the existence of the court order itself.

“When the court system prevents you from discussing it, you can’t discuss it,” says Gini Dietrich, founder and CEO of Arment Dietrich. “You can’t even say why you aren’t allowed to talk about it. You can only say you’re not allowed to discuss it.”

Which raises the question: How does a company handle a communications crisis when it is virtually unable to communicate?

Verizon’s only response thus far has been the leak of this internal memo written by Randy Milch, executive vice president and general counsel, on Thursday morning. Itself a handy piece of crisis communications, the memo neither confirms nor denies the NSA program or the court order, but it does disclose that Verizon would have to comply with such a request from the government—if one did exist.

There’s been no statement to the public, however—not so much as a post on the company’s Facebook page or the corporate website as of Friday morning.

“It is such a highly confidential issue,” Bob Varettoni, Verizon’s executive director of media relations, said from his New Jersey office before deferring an interview request to his Washington, D.C., counterpart (who was unavailable for comment). “There is so much legal pressure about what we can and cannot say; I wish I could be more help.”

Reports have circulated that Verizon’s crisis managers are scurrying to prepare an official response to the situation, even going so far as seeking cooperation from the Obama administration to help clear the air with some kind of public statement of its own. So, while angry Verizon users vent their frustrations across multiple social media platforms, the company is muted—and shielded—by a federal gag order.

If Wall Street has the final word in the severity of a corporate crisis, then Verizon’s silence has weathered this storm quite well: The company’s stock jumped 3.5 percent on Thursday.

RELATED: Hear powerful case studies from The Coca-Cola Company, Walmart and Whole Foods Market in October at Microsoft's HQ.