Crisis Management Thoughts » media training

You’re Not Ready

Jonathan Bernstein — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 23:07:42 +0000

Nothing taught in most MBA programs prepares CEOs for giving media interviews during crises.

– Jonathan Bernstein

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Would-Be Davids

Jonathan Bernstein — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:34:05 +0000

The Internet provides many would-be Davids with ready-made slingshots.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Reporter Remorse

Jonathan Bernstein — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:32:51 +0000

The longer you talk to a reporter, the greater the chance you’ll say something you’ll regret.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Foresight and Your Money

Jonathan Bernstein — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:45:14 +0000

Ninety percent of the crises to which I’ve responded over the past two decades have been, in hindsight, completely preventable. Foresight, for those who engage in crisis preparedness, has proven to be far more cost-effective than hindsight.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Be Prepared

Jonathan Bernstein — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:16:14 +0000

The Internet can be a powerful weapon for crisis management, but without preparation and planning it is simply another poorly hoisted petard.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Just Ask!

Jonathan Bernstein — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:01:31 +0000

News headlines will seldom tell you what YOUR important audiences believe about your crisis situation. You have to ask them!

– Jonathan Bernstein

Wisdom is…

Jonathan Bernstein — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 01:24:41 +0000

Wisdom is using other people’s hindsight as your foresight.

– Jonathan Bernstein

A Horse to Water

Jonathan Bernstein — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:20:48 +0000

I’ve led a lot of still-thirsty horses to water.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Deadlines

Jonathan Bernstein — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:51:37 +0000

The press doesn’t care much about YOUR deadlines, they care about theirs. If your deadline is more important than theirs, you lose.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Internet Time

Jonathan Bernstein — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:56:49 +0000

When you get embroiled in a controversy, you could well get calls and E-mail messages from journalists who are nine time zones away… they’ll expect answers from you in Internet time — which means right now.

– from “The Publicity Handbook: The Inside Scoop From More Than 100 Journalists and PR Pros on How to Get Great Publicity Coverage — in Print, On-Line, and on the Air.”

Failed Writers

Jonathan Bernstein — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 02:57:30 +0000

Some editors are failed writers, but so are most writers.

– T. S. Eliot

The Cause

Jonathan Bernstein — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 03:30:09 +0000

If you and your colleagues are spending most of your time on news releases and very little time preparing for interviews, you may want to re-examine your priorities. Interviews are where the news is. And, when a story goes bad, the interview is more likely to be the cause than the news release.

– From “Monday Morning Media Minute” ezine published by Jerry Brown, APR, impact@rmi.net

The Greatest Problem

Jonathan Bernstein — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:33:35 +0000

“The greatest problem with communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.”

– George Bernard Shaw

Mistakes in Motive

Jonathan Bernstein — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 22:55:25 +0000

“The public may be willing to forgive us for mistakes in judgment but it will not forgive us for mistakes in motive.”

– Robert W. Haack, President, New York Stock Exchange, 1967

Never Turn Your Back

Jonathan Bernstein — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:54:55 +0000

“Treat the media as you would any other watchdog. Stay calm, be friendly, let them sniff your hand and never turn your back.”

– Anonymous

“No comment.”

Jonathan Bernstein — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:07:23 +0000

“Saying ‘no comment’ is not the same thing as making no comment — but both communicate a message.”

– Jonathan Bernstein

The Least Important Audience

Jonathan Bernstein — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:12:03 +0000

The press is most organizations’ least important audience.

– Jonathan Bernstein

Uncooperative Reporters

Jonathan Bernstein — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:43:56 +0000

“That reporter interviewed me for over an hour and didn’t even report the most important information I gave him!”

– typical statement by angry executive who has never been media-trained.