Tag: crisis communications

Grading Cam Newton’s apology

Posted on by Brian Lee

Situation: Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton made a sexist remark to a female reporter during his press conference.

Grade for apology: C+

Analysis: The apology was not sincere enough, as evident in the line, “If you are a person who took offense to what I said, I sincerely apologize to you.” That implies the remark was not sexist to everyone, and he’s reluctantly apologizing.

In addition, Cam doesn’t explain how he’ll prevent saying these types of remarks in the future. He also misidentifies himself as the victim, stating “I’ve already lost sponsors and countless fans” (the actual victim is the reporter).

Here’s the full apology: “After careful thought, I understand that my word choice was extremely degrading, and disrespectful to women. To be honest, that was not my intention. If you are a person who took offense to what I said, I sincerely apologize to you. I’m a man who tries to be a positive role model in my community, and tries to use my platform to inspire others. I take ownership to everything that comes with that. And what I did was extremely unacceptable. I’m a father to two beautiful daughters, and at their age I try to instill in them that they can be anything that they want to be. The fact that during this whole process I’ve already lost sponsors and countless fans, I realize that the joke is really on me. I’ve learned a valuable lesson from this. And to the young people who see this, I hope you learn something from this as well. Don’t be like me, be better than me. To the reporters, the journalists, the moms, supermoms, to the daughters, the sisters, and the women all around the world, I sincerely apologize and hope that you can find the kindness in your heart to forgive me. Thank you.”

Three Tips When Selecting a Crisis Spokesperson

Posted on by Taylor Kennedy

INTRODUCTION

media-spokespersonWhen a hospital has a crisis, it’s important to have the right spokesperson, as this person is the liaison between the hospital and the public (and media).

For example, the size and severity of the crisis plays a factor in determining who should serve as spokesperson (e.g. CEO, PR Director, department head, etc.). This person could be picked after the crisis breaks, but it’s better to have a pool of potential spokespeople identified in advance (as part of your crisis communications plan).

Here are three tips when selecting a spokesperson for your hospital crisis:

  1. Choose the correct seniority level. More often than not, having the PR director or a vice-president serve as the spokesperson is sufficient. Your hospital doesn’t want to make a “minor” crisis seem more important than it is (think how infrequently the President of the United States makes announcements). Plus, the CEO can override the PR director or VP if they misspeak. Only in times of a “major” crisis should the CEO be the spokesperson. Really, his/her time is best spent managing the crisis (and being seen doing so).
  2. The spokesperson needs to have the right personality. Your spokesperson needs to be able to demonstrate empathy and show the public that the hospital is taking all the necessary measures to make sure the crisis is handled correctly. This may seem obvious, but someone with an adversarial personality would not make a good spokesperson. All spokespeople should go through thorough media training.
  3. Having multiple spokespeople is acceptable.Certain circumstances may require having more than one spokesperson. For example, in the event of a cybersecurity breach, you may need to bring in your CIO to provide a technical explanation. Make sure the spokespeople are consistent in their messaging.

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