Monday, April 2, 2007

CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS AND DEALING WITHT THE MEDIA

During a moment of crisis and disaster dealing with the media can become difficult. News media notification is quite different than notifications given to other audiences. During these situations, the media usually gets word of the event and winds up contacting the company. Placing the communication team in a reactive rather than proactive situation. Sending the right and effective message to the general public is essential during a crisis situation. The media definitely is the medium that the average person relies for information, therefore during a crisis situation companied should be sure to follow these simple guidelines in order to enhance the crisis communication message and response:

  • Release only verified and approved information.
  • Promptly alert the media to all key events or news releases.
  • When they are onsite, ensure that the media have a corporate escort.
  • Have a designated spokesperson.
  • Maintain accurate records and logs of all inquiries and media coverage.
  • Meet press deadlines.
  • Provide equal opportunities for print and electronic media.
  • Do not speculate on the cause of the crisis or emergency.
  • Do not speculate on dollar losses.
  • Do not permit unauthorized personnel to comment to the media.
  • Do not mislead the media.
  • Do not place blame.

I find these guidelines very informative and essential for all of us to have in mind

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Good info, but some typos get in the way. Please fix.

Typo in the headline

"Placing the communication team in a reactive rather than proactive situation." -- this is not a complete sentence; it is a clause that should be connected by a comma to the previous sentence.

"The media definitely is the medium..."? Kind of redundant. Just say people rely on the news media for information in times of crisis.