What NOT to do: Lesson 9...No Communication

Since last Tuesday, there has been uproar among Facebook members. Out of the blue, Facebook secretly changed its terms of services. The new rules of Facebook basically says that they would own the content people posted on the site, even personal information after the person closed out their account.

And by the next morning, users who logged into their account receivied a posting that said that the site was going back to its previous terms of use policies while it resolves the issues.

Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg, then created a group called "Facebook Bill of Rights and Responsibilities." The group’s main focus was to inform users that Facebook "doesn't claim rights to any of your photos or other content. We need a license in order to help you share information with your friends, but we don't claim to own your information."

What should Facebook have done? If I were a member of Facebook’s PR department, I’d make sure that a public statement was issued about the changes to the terms of services. If they were going to change things, why do it in secrecy?

-Travis Francis

What NOT to do: Lesson 8... Be racist

Before I even begin, I want everyone to know that this post is less of a "What NOT to do in PR" and more of a "I'm completely outraged."

On Wednesday, February 18, 2009, I was on my way back to work. I had the radio up, listening to the Michael Baisden show on 96.1 JAMZ. The major subject of the show (the reason Baisden showed up to work, even though he was ill) was the editorial cartoon that appeared in the New York Post on the same day. If you're unfamiliar with the cartoon I am referring to, simply Google "NY Post cartoon" and the image will be the first result.

The cartoon is of two police officers standing over a monkey who has been shot to death. The officer's gun is smoking and the monkey is lying in a pool of its own blood, with two visible bullet holes . The cartoon reads "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."

Really? It's 2009, we have a black president and one of the world's leading newspapers allows its editorial cartoonist to publish racist material. What's worse is that the New York Post is defending the cartoon, saying "the cartoon is a clear parody of a current news event," (referring to the Connecticut woman who was recently mauled by a Chimpanzee).

Talk about bad publicity. The New York Post should have IMMEDIATELY issued an apology and the cartoonist should go draw somewhere else. I expect so much more from such a prominent newspaper.

-Gearey McLeod

What NOT to do: Lesson 7... Be creative, but don't cross the line

Last week I was surfing the Internet and came across a headline on Yahoo! that said Microsoft chairman, Bill Gates, opened a jar and unleashed a swarm of mosquitoes on the audience at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) Conference.

Gates released the mosquitoes to make a demonstration about malaria, a disease carried in mosquitoes. When I first read it, I thought Bill Gates had lost his mind. I thought to myself, "it's just cruel to release mosquitoes on people."

In the article on Yahoo! News, it was reported that Gates began to open a the jar full of mosquitoes and said, "Malaria is spread by mosquitoes. I brought some. Here I'll let them roam around. There is no reason only poor people should be infected."

Luckily for him and the audience, the mosquitoes were malaria-free. Gates has been known for his philanthropy, one of the latest is finding a cure for malaria. I understand what he was attempting to do, but mosquitoes are still pests. If they get a chance to suck your blood like the flying vampires they are, you'll get an itch and a bump wherever the mosquito decided to drink blood from your body.

As a PR professional, I'd definitely tell Bill to not do that. There are ways to make a demonstration without putting people's lives in danger. I don't care how much money one has, it is absolutely cruel to release mosquitoes, or any bug, on an audience. That demonstration has now gone overboard. What would you advise Gates to do?

-Marlon Williams

What NOT to do: Lesson 6…Spin the Truth

When reports came in that Chris Brown would not be attending the last Sunday’s Grammy’s because of a LAPD investigation for felony battery, the media automatically zoned in on his girlfriend Rihanna. Members of the media then contacted Rihanna’s publicist, Amanda Silverman, to gain information on the explosive accusations that Brown laid hands on Rihanna.

Silverman stated that her client was involved in a traffic accident and was "fine." She then released another statement stating that the R&B singer was "well. Thank you for your concern and support." It was later reported that Rihanna was being tended to at Los Angeles’ Cedar-Sinai Medical Center with injuries that reflected a domestic abuse assault.

Fabricating stories isn’t new to Silverman, she’s been caught by the media before. Creating stories about high-profile clients Daman Dash and Naomi Campbell has given her a bad name with the press. As Page Six puts it, “If Silverman says the sun is shining, bring an umbrella.”

The media is known for calling out publicists for lying, that’s the last thing you want to do because then you’ll become the story and be crucified for it. What Silverman should have done was think before she spoke. No matter what, don't lie about the situation. If anything, a simple “No Comment” would have done the job. Lying is the one sin the media will neither tolerate nor forgive.

- Travis Francis

What NOT to do: Lesson 5...Deny the Holocaust

British Bishop Richard Williamson is at the center of controversy after being brought back into the Catholic Church. The reason for the rift….? Williamson said he did not believe any Jews were gassed during the Holocaust. He insulted the memory of the 6 million Jews murdered in Nazi death camps by stating that only 200,000 were killed.

Jewish groups and Roman Catholic bishops in Pope Benedict XVI native Germany demanded that Williamson apologize for his statements before he could be admitted as a bishop into the Roman Catholic Church. But instead, Williamson said that he needed “proof” that the Holocaust actually happened. What more proof does he need?

The Vatican practically did nothing to ease the PR damage done by the decision of Pope Benedict XVI to bring Williamson back to the church. Williamson has never apologized for his ridiculous views about the extent of Jewish suffering under the Nazis. If Williamson has yet to retract his outrageous statements regarding the treatment of the Jewish people during the days of Adolf Hitler, he should not be a registered member of the Church, much less a Bishop. As the PR Practitioner for the Vatican, I would not only excommunicate Williamson from the church but also issue an apology to the Jewish community.

-Travis Francis

What NOT to do: Lesson 4... Pay your Taxes.

On Tuesday former Sen. Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination to head the Department of Health and Human Services. If you haven't kept up with the latest "What's Obama gonna do next" news, Daschle withdrew his nomination because he didn't pay his taxes.

According to news sources like CNN and others, Daschle knew about his tax problems way back in June of last year, and he didn't pay them back until after he was nominated. Now come on, how in the world did he think he was going to pull that off? Clearly, Al Capone was caught on taxes when the authorities couldn't catch him on anything else. Also the Obama team should have known better, but we all make mistakes, right?

One could argue that, but in the world of public relations, it seemed as if they were trying to get over on the system. It seemed as if Sen. Daschle had no intentions whatsoever to pay back his taxes. This breaks one of the codes of ethics: honesty. I guess it's like in the movie Frost/Nixon when Pres. Nixon said, "When the president does it, it's not illegal." WRONG! And it's illegal for senators too. Sorry, Tom.

All though this is a PR no-no, President Obama did the right thing by taking responsibility of the appointees to his administration. Really he had no choice, this was the second person to step down due to unpaid taxes. The first was Nancy Killefer, who was appointed as the chief of performance officer, a new post in administration. The right thing would have been to get that cleared up immediately before it's discovered by anyone else. The moral of the story is you can hide, but you can't run. Whenever one is not honest upfront, the dog will come back to bite you in the behind.As a PR practitioner, what would you have done in order to keep this issue from blowing up in the media.

-Marlon Williams

What NOT to Do: Lesson Three...The Era of Social Media Has Arrived -- DON'T IGNORE IT!

The first and best example that comes to mind, of how powerful social media is, is the case of record company Sony BMG.

Back in 2005 the record company installed certain security measures on their CDs, to prevent copying. Sounds harmless, however, Sony BMG forgot to mention to its publics, that the security measures installed were spyware and rootkits (widely described as malware or malicious spyware) which allowed viruses to break into the users computer.One user discovered the malware on his computer.

Unfortunately for Sony BMG, the user was an influential member of the blogosphere. He asked his fellow bloggers and Sony CD consumers, if they were experiencing similar problems with their computer and CDs. Of course they were, and immediately Sony BMG was under heavy fire. Not from the law, or any power players in the music business, but from regular everyday users of social media.

So why is this story important to anyone interested in PR? Whether you're a prominent figure or celebrity, you run a local business, or head a global conglomerate, people are going to talk about you. You're going to face scrutiny. Because we're in an era of social media, it's now easier than ever for people to communicate. Web sites like Blogger, Facebook and Twitter, make it so easy for people to share ideas and information. Within minutes (literally) news of PR disaster can spread from one friend to another. From a PR standpoint the best thing you can do is get out and participate. By participate I don't mean make excuses or be defensive, but get your side of the story out there. Clarify any miscommunication between you and your publics and it's guaranteed to have a positive effect on image and reputation.

-Gearey McLeod

What NOT to Do: Lesson Two... Blaming the Victim

Nearly nine months after Rachel Hoffman was killed, state lawmakers are proposing the Rachel Hoffman Law. The law will require confidential informants to seek legal advice before consenting to undercover work.

In May 2008, Tallahassee police caught Hoffman with marijuana and pills not prescribed to her. After being threatened with prison time, Hoffman agreed to work as an informant and set up a deal with her dealer. Police gave her $13,000 to buy 1,500 ecstasy pills, two ounces of cocaine and a handgun.
With a deal running well over $10,000, Hoffman’s dealers were on to her. During the investigation, police lost contact with her and her body was discovered two days later.

After finding Hoffman's body, the Tallahassee Police Department called a press conference where they basically blamed Hoffman for her own death. They made sure that they publicly announced her criminal charges and boldly implied that her death was the result of her breaking protocol during the sting operation.

As a PR student, we’re taught to never blame the victim. TPD not only blamed Hoffman but they displayed a lack of sincerity in the tone of their response.

If I were part of the PR department, I’d make sure that these five steps were completed.
1. Take Responsibility
2. Clearly communicate what went wrong
3. Explain what action you're going to take
4. Describe what steps are being taken so a situation like this doesn’t happen again and
5. Most importantly apologize!

As a PR Professional, what would you have done differently? What should TPD have done?

-Travis Francis