Spokespeople need to be ready for the media's tough questions

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Cnn In our media training sessions, we tell participants that 90% of the success of a media interview is determined before the reporter asks their first question. It's in the homework you do to prepare for the interview. It's finding out the focus of the interview, researching the reporter's past stories on the topic, developing strong key messages and anticipating the questions you'll be asked (especially the 2-3 nightmare questions you hope you never get asked).
 
Going into a media interview unprepared is risky. Doing it on CNN is downright dangerous. Recently, Texas legislator Rep. Debbie Riddle appeared on CNN's 'Anderson Cooper 360' to talk about 'terror babies' - a supposed threat in which terrorist organizations send pregnant women to the US to have their children who would be US citizens, but who would be trained abroad to be terrorists and could return to the US without raising suspicion.
 
When Cooper asked for evidence about the controversial claim, Riddle alluded to conversations with 'former FBI officials'. Unsatisfied with her response, Cooper asked her several more times for evidence of these plots, saying that claims of this magnitude warranted proof. As the reporter continued to press, Riddle became visibly uncomfortable and finally said, "When your folks called me in the preliminary [interview]...they did not tell me that you were going to grill me for this specific information that I was not ready to give you tonight. They did not tell me that, sir." You can view the interview here.
 
The Lesson: Before your media interview, anticipate questions -- escpecially the bad ones. Take a few moments during your preparation to play the role of the reporter and think of the hardest questions you would ask yourself. Ask trusted colleagues to think of some difficult questions too. Then, figure out how you're going to address those questions if they come up in the interview. In most cases, those questions will never see the light of day. But if they do, at least you'll be prepared.

Note: This story is taken from our 'Manage your Message' e-newsletter. To get your own copy sent to your inbox each month, sign up here.

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Rob Ford's CBC Radio gravy train wreck

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Rob ford picture Rob Ford, the mayor-elect of Toronto, is no stranger to the media. In fact, he's done hundreds of interviews in the past year alone, driving home his message about stopping the 'gravy train' of wasteful spending at City Hall. But none of those interviews was as baffling as the national radio interview he granted to CBC just one day after his resounding victory.

 
If you haven't heard the interview yet, you really need to hear it for yourself. As Carol Off, the co-host of CBC's 'As It Happens' starts asking him questions, Ford ignores her and starts barking at someone on the football field (he's a football coach and conducted the interview during a team practice). He does this several times. You can almost hear the host's irritation level rising as the interview progresses. Ford then gives a few stock quotes about cost-cutting, then says he has to go and abruptly ends the interview.
 
The Lesson: Where to begin? I'm probably going to miss a few, but let's take a crack at it, shall we? First, avoid scheduling a national radio interview for a time when you know you're going to be standing in the middle of a windy field on a cell phone (yes, the interview time had been arranged in advance and agreed to by Ford). Give the interviewer your undivided attention. Avoid yelling at others while conducting a media interview. When you have an opportunity to speak to the entire country, use it to deliver your most important messages to your most important audiences. Thank the people who voted for you. Assure those who didn't vote for you that you'll work to earn their trust. Whether or not his behaviour in the CBC interview was deliberate (Ford reportedly has a dislike for the national broadcaster), it represents a real lost opportunity. 

Note: This story is taken from our 'Manage your Message' e-newsletter. To get your own copy sent to your inbox each month, sign up here.

 

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BP continues to spill oil and credibility

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Bp BP continues to get hammered for the devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The spill, which is on its way to becoming the worst in U.S. history, has irreparably harmed the company's carefully cultivated image of environmental responsibility. Louisiana and federal officials in the U.S. have described the company's cleanup efforts as being 'not adequate'. No kidding.
 
Rather than taking responsibility for the disaster, BP Group Chief Executive Tony Hayward has tried to position BP as being among a group of organizations fighting a common enemy (the spill). Some could argue that this was a bit of clever positioning, but in the end, it risks making the company's executives look like weasels trying to avoid a mess they helped to create.
 
Hayward also channeled Winston Churchill in a recent interview, saying, "We are determined to fight this spill on all fronts, in the deep waters of the gulf, in the shallow waters and, should it be necessary, on the shore."
 
The Churchill-esque quote just seems a bit contrived for such a serious environmental catastrophe, especially since the company has admitted it lacks the resources to stop the leak and clean up the mess.
 
Thanks to its lacklustre efforts (both in the water and in the media), the company's market cap has plummeted by more than $25 billion since the spill began more than two weeks ago. And the oil continues to flow...
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How the TTC mishandled the media in the 'case of the snoozing worker'

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How the TTC mishandled the media in the 'case of the snoozing worker'

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) faced a PR challenge last month after a cellphone picture of a sleeping worker went viral on the Internet. For the TTC...

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Don Cherry says doctor's accusations 'totally unfair'

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This is a quick follow up on the story we've been following this week about the doctor who accused Don Cherry of being responsible for head injuries in the game of hockey.

In his December 19 Coach's Corner segment on Hockey Night in Canada, Cherry called Doctor Tator's accusations 'totally unfair'. He even went so far as to say, "I would hate to think Doctor Tator is doing it just to get his name in the paper."

You can view the Coach's Corner segment here.

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The wrath of Grapes...

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Quick follow up to yesterday's post about the brain surgeon who attacked Don Cherry as a way to get his story about head injuries in hockey in the media. It has only been one day but the payback has started to roll in. Check out Bruce Dowbiggin's story today in The Globe and Mail. 

And this link has an audio clip of Don Cherry refusing to do a radio interview on the topic. Warning - multiple expletives....

Coach's Corner should be more entertaining than usual this Saturday night.

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How to get a boring story on A1: Take a shot at Don Cherry

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A Toronto brain surgeon has used a tried and true PR technique to get his story on the front page of one of Canada's national newspapers. And good for him. But you can rest assured the other shoe will drop this Saturday night.

On A1 of the National Post, there's a story titled 'A shot at Don Cherry'. At its core, this is a story about hits to the head and concussions in the game of hockey. In this case, the messenger is Dr. Charles Tator. His story is an important one. He's calling for the sport to better protect its players from hits to the head, which may lead to devastating long-term health effects.

And while the story might be important, it's also boring. Few journalists will feel compelled to write a story about something that has been happening in a sport for decades, and which may cause negative health effects years down the road. 

To make a story like this appealing to a reporter, Dr. Tator had to hang it on one (or more) of the three drivers of news: change, controversy or human interest. He chose controversy, opting to attack one of hockey's most recognizable personalities, Don Cherry.

"I think he (Don Cherry) is a negative influence because he applauds aggressive hockey," Dr. Tator is quoted as saying in the article.

The tactic worked. A story pitch that should have ended up in the 'deleted items' file instead wound up on the front page and will surely generate coverage in radio and TV throughout Canada this week. Given that he is a brain surgeon (let's face it, there's a certain degree of intelligence implied), Dr. Tator is undoubtedly aware that he will be in Mr. Cherry's crosshairs at approximately 8:00 pm this Saturday night during Cherry's 'Coach's Corner' segment on Hockey Night in Canada.

Don Cherry does like aggressive hockey. But he also preaches the need for a return to the type of respect that players had for one another in the good ol' days. Cherry has long been a supporter of safe play in the game of hockey. He is the driving force behind the 'STOP' decal program that gets young children to think twice before hitting another player from behind.

Dr. Tator refers to these efforts as "window-dressing" that won't lead to a cultural shift.

If the good doctor wanted to truly effect change in the way the game is played, he might have been better served to call NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to the carpet. In this case, however, he simply wanted to get his story on the front page. And by taking a pot shot at one of Canada's most popular and beloved senior citizens, he has succeeded. But there is a price to pay for draping your boring story in controversy at someone else's expense. We'll just have to tune in to Coach's Corner this Saturday Night to see what that price is.

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David Letterman gives a lesson in crisis management

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David Letterman gives a lesson in crisis management
Even if you didn't watch the Late Show with David Letterman last Thursday night, you've likely seen the news coverage that followed it. Letterman used 10 minutes of his show on October 1st to tell millions of people about an alleged extortion plot against him. If you're unfamiliar with the story...
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Globe and Mail's Salutin takes cheap shot at PR

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In his column in the Globe and Mail this morning, Rick Salutin reveals a serious bias against the PR industry. What's that, you say? A reporter who's got an axe to grind against PR?

Everyone (particularly a newspaper columnist, who's paid to fan the flames of controversy) is entitled to his/her opinion. On that note, here's mine. This column is an unwarranted cheap shot at the PR profession.

Salutin uses the Michael Bryant affair as his platform (the recent case in which a former Ontario politician, in the car with his wife, was involved in an altercation with a bike courier which resulted in the courier's death). After noting that the media coverage of the event has served the public well, Salutin writes, "But there's one element that irritates me severely. It's the presence, since very early, of a public-relations firm aiding Mr. Bryant."

The rest of the column doesn't seem to have a clear point. It just rehashes journalism's old disdain for PR. He also suggests that the other problem at play is that many journalism grads end up in public relations. And that a "depressing quantity of news stories, especially in areas such as medicine, now come from well-produced PR packages sent on behalf of pharmaceutical firms and the like."

He bemoans the fact that PR people "may put words in client's mouths, vet their ideas and advise on whether to speak at all".

Is this guy for real? Salutin has been at this game a long time. His feigned naivete on the role of PR comes off more like a columnist's device than genuine concern. If a prominent public figure gets tangled up in a situation like Bryant did recently, their first two phone calls should be to their lawyer and a PR firm. The man's career, reputation and freedom are on the line. And given the media's love of 'David versus Goliath' stories, the bicycle courier starts out as the clear favourite in the court of public opinion, even though the truth has yet to emerge. Bryant likely has a million things going through his mind. Hiring experienced professionals for council on how to handle his one shot when the TV cameras are shoved in his face is not shocking, insulting, or devious. It's common sense. And if Salutin happened to be the unfortunate individual in the car that night, I'll bet he would have the Globe and Mail's PR firm (that's right, the Globe and Mail has a PR firm) on speed dial - pronto.

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File under 'brutal news releases'

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PR folks should get a kick out of this recent news release from the Joint Canadian Tanning Association. It was issued in response to recent media coverage about the alleged damaging health effects of tanning beds. I would specifically draw your attention to the quote at the end of the release - it borders on ridiculous.

Here's the link...

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Three politicians with 'foot in mouth' disease

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In the latest issue of our 'Manage your Message' e-newsletter (out today), we look at three politicians who screwed up with the media in the month of June. What can other media spokespeople learn from their high-profile foul-ups? Sign up here to receive the June issue (it takes less than 10 seconds to sign up and your e-mail address is safe with us).

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N.L. Premier Danny Williams blows up at reporter on live radio

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Earlier this week, Danny Williams (Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador) called into a live radio show and got into a testy exchange with host Randy Simms. Williams called in specifically to criticize Simms for being 'too negative', just hours after the announcement of the approval of a multi-billion dollar offshore oil project.

Williams was apparently angered when the host asked what the Premier was going to do for the province's troubled forestry and fishing industries.

"It's irresponsible and reckless," Williams told Simms on air. "We don't need that kind of crap and pessimism coming out of your mouth. I refuse to listen to pessimists like you and we are going to move forward despite you."

The call ended with Williams hanging up on Simms.

This on-air blowup is getting a lot of play in the Canadian media. It also defeats one of the most basic principles of conducting effective media interviews: "Never get into an argument with a reporter." Not only did Williams get into an argument, he made a special phone call specifically to get into an argument with the on air host.




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MySpace CEO calls staff 'bloated' in media statement

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MySpace today announced plans to cut its staff by nearly 30%. Job cuts like these are always unfortunate for those affected, but it's important for the company's leaders to handle the situation properly from a communications standpoint in order to serve the company's best interests in the long-term.

In a prepared statement, Owen Van Natta, the company's CEO, said, "Simply put, our staffing levels were bloated and hindered our ability to be an efficient and nimble team-oriented company."

"Bloated?"

How do you think this word makes the departing employees feel? Valued? Appreciated?

And of equal importance, how do you think it makes the surviving employees feel?

I suspect that the word 'bloated' was specifically chosen to characterize MySpace's growing staff complement as something that happened by accident. Like eating too much at a buffet, for example. The right approach would have been for management to take accountability for the situation and outline their plan for continued growth and profitability. These people didn't hire themselves. Someone made these hires. And now, faced with a recession, and with Facebook and Twitter eating away at MySpace's audience, revenues are down.

The word 'bloated' is also getting extensive pick-up in the media as part of this story, including the New York Times.

The far superior quote was from Jonathan Miller, News Corporation's chief executive of Digital Media, who said, "MySpace grew too big considering the realities of today’s marketplace. I believe this restructuring will help MySpace operate much more effectively both structurally and financially moving forward. I am confident in MySpace’s next phase under the leadership of Owen and his team."


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Baird inserts foot in mouth at FCM convention

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Federal Transport Minister John Baird is in damage control mode today after saying the City of Toronto should 'f___ off' at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities convention in British Columbia. Baird made the comments in a private conversation. What he didn't realize (until it was too late) was that he had inadvertently walked into the media room, making his controversial comments fair game for the reporters in the room.

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