PR is the scientist in the room … your reaction when you’re caught off guard might make or break a story
Quick recap: Data firm Astronomer’s CEO, Andy Byron and Chief People Officer (HR director), Kristin Cabot, were caught during a kiss-cam sweep at a concert. Their duck-and-run response sparked uh-ohs and lots of speculation.
Their reaction sparked the hot takes that led to a PR issue. Had they stayed chill and not reacted to their images on the screen, the public might not know the name Astronomer-the-company any better than it did last week. Photo credit: Coldplay
NFL, Hamlin emergency confirms need for crisis communications
People who work in or play football know that the sport comes with risks. I think, however, most of us have never seen anything like what happened to Buffalo Bills’ safety Damar Hamlin on the field in Cincinnati Monday night. We were horrified earlier this NFL season when Miami Dolphins’ quarterback Tua Tagovailoa experienced a seizure after […]
Southwest Airlines took a PR hit, but can recover
In case you didn’t hear, Southwest Airlines got into quite a public and customer relations pickle this week. More than a million people reportedly saw flights canceled or lost luggage during a high-volume holiday travel period. Passengers and even some of the airline’s staff took to social media and slammed the airline’s internal operations. I […]
Jeopardy’s PR lesson
This was initially posted in the August 25, 2021 issue of SIDEbar, a weekly PR newsletter distributed by gpublicity. When game show Jeopardy! set out to find a replacement for its late legendary host, Alex Trebek, it looked like it was doing everything right. Several guest hosts stepped into temporary auditions of sorts. Each generated a healthy […]
Different look, same writer
Welcome to my new blog. And my new look. In an effort to communicate the personal side of the publicity work I do, I decided to use what I identify with best — my own name. I continue to work with and consult with others who know how to do things better than I do […]