I found two items today in Bulldog Reporter of interest. One, Craigslist is being sued by Cook County, Illinois for allegedly being the biggest source of prostitution in the country. The other is about the Seattle PI, owned by Hearst, shutting down as a daily and considering going to an online only ...

This story from The Guardian in UK is so astounding I kind of wonder if I am being hoaxed. I just got off a call with a student researching online crises and crisis management and one of the questions essentially was: do companies today “get it� when it comes to the online risks. I said I they w...

I’ve advocated that there are some times in a reputation crisis when you have to take the gloves off. I know I have done this on several occasions, particularly when the activist/opponent shows little regard for the truth and they are getting traction. These battles always come down to credibi...

Here is another guest post from Neil Chapman from London. Critical issue addressed: the dangers of speculating on cause. Sometimes the obvious takes time to sink in. It’s just past the third anniversary of the Buncefield explosion in the UK. It’s also the length of time it has taken government-a...

Just returned home from speaking at the PRSA International Conference in Detroit and now preparing my comments for my presentation at the Homeland Defense Journal Risk and Crisis Communication conference in DC on Nov 3. A few reflections. The PRSA conference struck me as a strong contrast to the con...

This July 17 New York Times article is a blistering attack on the reputation of one of the world’s most respected and revered non-profit organizations–the Red Cross. Having met some of the key communication leaders of this organization, I was eager to observe them effectively responding ...

Here’s a simple message to organizations and their communication leaders: Don’t lie. Simple. People don’t like liars. Dishonesty will be rewarded with complete lack of trust. And that will cause you endless problems. Case in point: Clay Bennett and the Seattle Supersonics. Bennett,...

There is more and more discussion about using blogs as a crisis management tool. Steve Phenix, a smart blogger for certain, sent me an email with his promotional message for blogging during a crisis–using his PR firm. And he used his own reputation crisis as an example of how it works. First, ...