Introduction

For 15 years, IEA has worked with public and private institutions in addressing environmental problems. Over those years, we've represented hundreds of organizations confronting what can be termed "crisis."

We soon learned that we needed a public relations acumen to help our clients.

We can be contacted and consulted directly in terms of crisis response. We have engineering and medical personnel who have experience in working with the media and public relations as part of their professional responses. Short of contacting us, this document may help. This document is intended to serve two purposes: as a conceptual discussion of how to work effectively with the media in the event of crisis, and as a helping source that can be quickly accessed in a crisis. We hope it will be of value in the first case and that you won't need it for the second.

[For a quick list of considerations for media contact, scroll to Attachment 1.]

I. Media Perspectives

A learned Professor of Journalism at one of our major universities talks about "media" as being sort of "fungible," meaning that, in some ways, "news" is produced, distributed and sold like wheat or iron, or perhaps a bit more like professional intensive services such as plumbing or carpentry. Performing well in a media career, or being a journalist, requires specialized skills, is even an art-like style but should always be viewed as part of an ongoing process that is both demand-driven and thus, in some ways, inflexible in approaching certain situations.

Learning to work with the media is like navigating a river. It can help you get where you're going but you have to respect and work with it on its own terms or you'll be taken on a wild and uncomfortable ride. You can't cause it to flow in a different direction.

In the years we've worked with the media on issues of risk and health, we've found a few commonalities among reporters and editors. It may be unfair to generalize but, in our view, there are five professional dynamics that are rather consistent among media professionals:

• The Reporter's World - Most reporters are bright, interesting and introspective. They are also under deadline pressures that most professionals would find unacceptable; time and timing are cruel masters. It is important to remember that most reporters are decent people and that their seeming irreverence and abrupt style are usually a result of deadline pressures.

• Chronicle vs. Event Media - There are two styles of media reporting with which administrators interact and must learn to recognize as fundamentally different. The most common could be called, "chronicle" reporting. For school administrators that would be stories about the school play, school lunch lists, awards, retirements, sporting events etc. - the generally positive information about the school district. "Chronicle" reporting arises out of, and is dependent upon, a mutually beneficial relationship between the media and the institution/district.
  
  That media style shifts into something less congenial when a dynamic event occurs. The reporter often morphs from a "chronicle" to an "event" style reporter and whole new environment dominates the interaction when a crisis occurs, i.e. someone is endangered or harmed, or a malfeasance or tragedy occurs (or appears to occur). The fundamental mistake school administrators typically make during such an "event," is to assume they're operating within the same paradigm used to report everyday events. For the event or crisis, timelines challenge the focus changes and inter-media competition heats up. The reporter's style can shift from a meandering, pleasant river to turbulent, cascading whitewater.
  
• Community Ethic - Ethically, a good reporter and a sound media institution sense their responsibility to the community, not just to the media center owner. Like a good physician sees him/herself as ultimately responsible to patients, there is usually a strong level of professional responsibility blended into a reporter's focus and style, as well as trying to create a product that sells.
  
• Technical Issues - Media professionals get good at understanding and then communicating, in the "King's English," a wide variety of technical matters. They don't consider it patronizing to have complex issues explained to them in basic terms. They, however, dislike a situation where someone tries to mystify or overly complicate a technical area. Be clear and straightforward using common language, i.e. a reporter won't think less of you for not using professional jargon.
  
• Truth - Truth is an important concept for the media. Since truth, like beauty, usually has something to do with "the eye of the beholder," reporters spend lots of time in searching for ways to express the truth. When someone consciously tries to mislead them, they swiftly move to a level of directed hostility rarely seen in other professions.

Example: During Desert Storm, a soldier - a graduate of a metropolitan area high school - was killed. The tragedy had a great effect on the school, since the soldier had graduated only two years before his death. Elementary school students collected money to plant and care for a tree in honor of the former student. The tree planting ceremony was emotional, deeply moving both the students and faculty, as well as the reporter assigned to do the story. She wrote a careful and beautiful story and was extremely complimentary of the school administrators who had invested substantial time in talking with the children, trying to explain the nature of death and war. The school administrators and faculty came to feel a special closeness to the reporter.

Some months later, district staff, relying on the opinion of an inexperienced employee, contracted to remove non-asbestos bearing insulation using hazardous waste controls, a procedure that required expensive asbestos control conditions. When the same reporter arrived to cover this story, the administrators were relieved, and the superintendent opened the meeting with, "Well, we certainly have a mess." But the sense of relief was short-lived. The reporter seemed to look right through them and began to ask a battery of leading technical intimidating questions. "What control does the district have over money committed to handling contamination?" "Did you check with the State Health Department to see if you're working to the standards of other districts?" "How much is the director of maintenance paid?" Then the worst questions of all - "Could the problem have been reversed, that is, could you endanger the health and safety of students by not understanding lab reports and exposing our children to contaminated material?" Board members were also contacted and asked to comment before the district had had a chance to brief them.

The reporting style in this instance made no sense to the administrators and seemed incongruous with the reporter's previous approach. The reporter, however, felt that the dichotomy in her different approaches was perfectly professional.

II. The Administrator and the Media Following Crisis

• They are Inherently Skeptical - Even reporters will not take things for granted. They will listen but, to the surprise of many administrators, their questions come hard, fast and in the reporter's own structured pattern, possibly at tangent to what the organization is trying to get across. Sometimes it can seem as though the questions were designed to destabilize. They often are.

  What's going on is this: something of a higher order of interest has happened and the reporters will invest the time and talent to understand exactly what. Administrators must not assume that their statements will simply be taken at face value, as may have been the case in the past. A good reputation will help, but the paradigm has been fundamentally changed. Concepts and technical data will be weighed and measured and contradictions sought after; experts may be brought into comment on the validity of what the organization says and its response to the crisis, or what could have been done to avoid the crisis. Experts with differing views may be especially sought out.

• They will Describe a "Worst-Case Scenario" - Think of the crisis from the reporter's perspective, i.e. what does the public really want to know? What do you want to know when your doctor or mechanic finds "something" wrong - how bad is it and how bad can it get? A good reporter will describe to the public what could happen if everything goes wrong, whether or not it's probable. It is helpful for the administrators, themselves, to preempt the media by describing the worst case scenario, then putting the situation into perspective.
  
• They will Seek Outside Comment - Event reporters will invest the time to talk to anyone who might have some interesting comments or some credible insight into what occurred. The formal press release is only one piece of the picture. The event media will carefully scrutinize what's being said and seek confirmation or, especially, disagreement. Other employees or Board members may be asked to respond to tricky or tough questions. People in the area may be asked to react to what they actually saw. Experts will be sought out for their perspectives ("expert" can be defined in nontraditional ways). Union representatives may be asked to state their opinions. Consultants, contractors, even people "on the street" may be asked for their take on what's going on.

The following are seven rules that are important to remember when a crisis hits:

1. Demonstrate that the "System," i.e. District Administration, is in Control. A former Public Information Director for a major utility company had a rule: if there is a crisis - anything from a nuclear leak to potential malfeasance or ethical conduct regarding regulators - the only person who talks to the world about that crisis will be an executive. Even if that executive does not have a history of strong communications skills, he or she will be the principal contact, will "host" the necessary press conferences and should be the person principally available to media. This medium of communication says to all concerned that the "system" is functioning and that there is structure and control. What is said is important, but who says it can be critical. As the former Public Information Director put it once, "No intelligent person would count on M.A.S.H. star, Alan Alda, for medical advice." Reporters are intelligent.

Someone at a senior administrative level should call any meeting involving the media, perhaps hosting a special board meeting where the "ceremonial" format of a regular board meeting would encompass a report on the crisis. The media should understand that this is a formal meeting and they they'll get their briefing in the traditional format. The ultimate statement that the system is working and taking the situation seriously. At the meeting, the administrator in charge can call on other administrators or consultants but should remain in obvious control. The sense of "chaos" will recede as the organizational structure of the school district establishes quiet and powerful boundaries around the event. Everyone will come to understand that the response is under control by the proper institutions.

Example: Twenty years ago, college basketball star Len Bias overdosed on cocaine. Cocaine use became a media focus. There was a jolting discovery that cocaine or cocaine substitutes were also being used by a number of American high school students. Many of these were over-the-counter products that essentially had a caffeine base. There was little physical risk but national concern arose regarding student use and that translated into reporters' covering local angles.

In one community, a reporter discovered that these essentially harmless caffeine products were being used on school grounds, in lavatories and during lunch break. There had been some reported "caffeine high" types of acting out. The district contracted with a speaker to talk about the phenomenon and invited the media to cover the story. The speaker, a knowledgeable psychologist with a background in substance abuse, made a reasoned presentation to a generally interested student body. The TV media appeared and filmed part of the presentation, then proceeded to interview several students who critiqued the presentation like a movie review. "These people [school administrators and the speaker] don't know what's really going on. It's really big, it's serious and it's blowing a lot of people's minds." "It's all over the place; people call the 3^rd floor lavatory "druggie central."

This was followed by a quote from an "expert," who stated that presentations like this generally don't work, that counseling or treatment is needed. The "expert" was, naturally, a drug counselor presumably looking for work.

2. Establish the "Defining Moment". Senior administrators are typically skillful at recasting ambiguous situations into clear patterns of action. They are used to describing complex situations in understandable ways to employees and the public. A good administrator can organize information in ways that will assure the best response. Following a crisis, they need to set the stage to do just that. Professional help makes sense, but the administrator ultimately sets the stage.

Specifically, the administrator selects a place and time to explain to the world what has occurred and how they are responding. This can take the form of a press release or, as described above, a special board meeting - one place and one time to communicate a consistent and clear message to the world. This becomes the "defining moment" of the crisis.

In coordinating the defining moment, there are generally five considerations:

• Provide an honest description of health, safety or (with legal counsel) malfeasance issues. Describe exactly what happened, when it happened, who was placed at risk or harmed, what occurred that represented danger or damage, where it happened and whether or not it can spread to other areas or harm others, what the remedy or response will likely involve and when the response will occur. Acknowledge what is not known and how information will continue to flow.

• Use common sense. Think about whether or not the information you release can itself escalate the problem or may be considered insensitive. If someone has been harmed or could be further harmed (physically or financially), have they or their family been fully informed? Should special information go out to certain groups of employees or certain community groups first via phone calls or other rapid communication, prior to a release to the media?

• Carefully provide the facts, then explain what you think they mean. Dates, times, names, places and what is known to have happened become the foundation of the communication. As the media begin to work with the details, supplying them with the facts is not only a courtesy but also helps keep the report credible and on track. You can help set the media's approach by identifying consultants to supply technical information. This is a valuable part of providing the facts in a credible and organized pattern and will instill confidence. It may also prevent them from seeking opinions of less than qualified people.

• Have a question and answer session as part of meeting. A Q&A session may seem destabilizing because you can't predict the questions, but this is an important way to not only give but also gain information. Responding to their questions is important to event media, even if your answer is that you "cannot answer at this time" or "are not certain." By being open to questions, you can also ascertain the media's approach to the story, where concerns exist and where stereotypes and predispositions come into play.

  Remember, the media may have a clearer view than you do of what the public wants to know and is concerned about because they have the luxury of being less singularly focused. You will learn from a question and answer session.

• Select a single, well-publicized place and time to have the discussion. Select a formal but accessible setting and be attentive to detail - sound systems, overheads, chairs, lighting etc. (consider condiments; it's a little easier to feel confident about someone who offers you coffee or food). This is one occasion when you really have to show that things are organized and working. Check the sound system!

  The main issue, of course, is the release of clear, credible information. You can allow for variations in timing of the release of information - a great courtesy to the media, especially radio and television, because of their varying deadlines - but the information must be consistent in whatever forms it is communicated.

Attachment 2 is a Sample Press Release. Note the listing of a specific date and time for public release of information and the inference that the information may change or be enhanced at that time, depending upon incoming data. That statement places a special burden on the media if they are considering releasing information prior to the stated date and time of release; they can prepare a story right away but have a disincentive to release it to the public prior to the stated date and time of the formal release. Consistent information released simultaneously brings clarity, perhaps even closure, to the situation.

The special meeting or press release has a special significance to event media. The event reporter typically looks for closure - a verdict in a trial, a formal decision by a board etc. - a clear point where the group in charge "rules on" or issues a final report on what occurred. You need to select the time and place, coordinate the setting and provide solid information within the right context. You are articulating what happened and what will happen next, and the media may see the issue transcending from "chaos" to reasoned management, to even "closure." Timing is critical.

The defining moment should take place just as soon as the facts are in and some basic decisions regarding response are made. Don't necessarily wait for a prime daytime hour - it's not unusual for reporters to work evenings or into the night (hold a meeting at 1:00 a.m. and the media will be there). If you wait too long, the media will speak to others and scrambled information will define the issue for you. The ever present "experts" will outline the problem and listed solutions from their own perspectives, as well as critiquing your performance before you've even set up your defining moment. On the other hand, if you select that "moment" too quickly, before you have all the basic information in hand or when other dimensions of the problem could arise, you might lose credibility. A good rule of thumb is, the world should know within 24-48 hours.

3. Role of Legal Counsel. By nature of a crisis situation, legal risks are always lurking in the background. Most organizational attorneys have some experience with the media and typically are strong in contract law, but they may not be versed in the specific problem you're confronting. It may make sense to allow the district's legal counsel to retain supporting legal counsel in special technical areas, i.e. an attorney of-counsel. This may be especially true in medical or environmental areas.

It is usually wise to have legal counsel set the guidelines for who should share what information under what conditions. This generally would involve anyone who represents the administration - someone with an "agency" relationship that could bind the organization. This may also involve contractors and consultants. It should not, of course, include the public, local experts, victims and their families. Anyone with an organization who can create civil liability needs to be given guidelines for sharing information and the organization should archive the efforts to provide those guidelines.

It typically makes sense to have legal counsel present during any organized communication to the media and counsel should have the authority to interrupt or comment, amend or clarify statements. There is a law firm with media and medical experience that we typically use.

4. Special Outreach Mediums. It sometimes makes sense to produce a written bulletin for concerned and interested people regarding the response to a crisis situation, as another way of assuring that consistent information is being provided in an organized and formal way. The bulletin may also become a media resource. Use of a Web site to communicate information is another tool that is increasingly important and used.

Example: In the 1990s, an organization with a central food supply area had taken to warehousing much of its food in a single cooling room. In that room, a maintenance supervisor noticed a leak from the roof through the ceiling and made a decision to repair the ceiling with fiberglass patching. He and others moved the stored food to the other end of the cooling room and began to apply fiberglass. One of the products in the fiberglass, toluene, volatilized and penetrated into food lipids, basically butter and chicken. Since in the cool temperature the fiberglass never dried, the toluene continued to slowly contaminate the food products, which were later eaten by cafeteria customers. Toluene is technically a teratogen, i.e. its ingestion, at low doses, is associated with causing birth defects. A pregnant employee explained to her obstetrician that the taste of the food in the cafeteria was odd and asked if it could threaten her pregnancy. The physician, through blood testing and questions, determined that she had, in fact, been exposed to toluene.

The organization had inadvertently exposed nearly 1,000 fertile women to an agent that could technically cause birth defects. Enraged employees and others who felt that they may have been exposed demanded information and threatened civil action.

The organization contracted with IEA to determine the extent of the problem, i.e. who had received what amount (dosage) of contamination, carrying what real risk. IEA worked with state regulators and the state health department, and even sought input from the head of preventive medicine at Yale University in order to honestly describe the low level of risk and outline the steps that were taken to assure it wouldn't happen again.

In the middle of this outreach effort, some important legal issues were identified. The manufacturer of the product had not included information about the risks of using the product near food, nor the problem with using the product in cool, moist areas. The client had not been provided with appropriate toxicology data on the product, which is required by statute. There was also a question about whether or not the maintenance person could actually read or interpret the warnings on the fiberglass package, itself. It became clear that there would be civil litigation to bring the manufacturer of the product into the litigation in order to minimize potential damages. Administrators faced another problem; they needed to communicate to the community, principally through the media, messages that would reestablish their credibility. They also needed to be careful not to issue communications that would open up liability or undermine its ability, if sued, to potentially recover through the manufacturer. The communications effort had to carefully accommodate legal positioning.

The approach taken was successful. They had legal counsel with a background in product liability and toxicology present at all informational meetings. He reviewed every press release and worked closely with staff and consultants. This working relationship was vital to the district in that it permitted reasonable information to get out to the public through the media and reestablished the district's credibility, first with the media and then with the community. It also carefully preserved the district's legal position.

Secondly, a phone contact individual, or team, should be available to speak with anyone who is concerned. This can be staff or volunteers who take calls, provide information and record expressed concerns. The administrator should select people they trust as insightful, with common sense and good interpersonal skills. This person or team would have three functions:

• To screen and separate calls, i.e. curiosity or crank calls, emotionally distraught people, people who need direction or support, those who need to be pushed through to administration;
  
• To provide consistent information to callers and control rumors;
  
• To organize input that reflects the views and concerns of callers to help management keep on track.
  
• That input will serve to guide administrators in sharing general information and help them focus on the important points.

  A phone contact point can also be of special value to the media. Remember, the event media are trying to organize information that responds to community concerns. The fact that a hundred people called and asked when the school will reopen or what will happen to the Holiday play becomes important information to the media and aids them in fulfilling their mission of responding to community concerns.

5. Truth. Francis Bacon said that truth can be likened to a chest of gems; some understood better by dim candlelight - the ruby, others in clear, stark daylight - the diamond.

The chronicle media typically works by candlelight. A badly produced play becomes "interesting," a pathetic sports team is "hard working," a CEO's mental breakdown is a "well deserved vacation." The chronicle media don't lie but typically put a helpful and thoughtful spin on the day to day activities that occur within most organizations. They really try to develop a friendly, symbiotic relationship with public and private institutions. Tact and taste are prioritized and what filters through is generally calm, steady information. They problem is, administrators get used to this style of reporting and aren't prepared for the style used in reporting a crisis situation.

The event media answer to different gods and come with their own spotlights and view of the truth. Everything said will be scrutinized, reviewed, studied and validated. Many senior administrators find this destabilizing as they're used to simply being trusted and to having what they say simply and tactfully repeated by media sources. Releasing absolute, unblemished truth is the only reliable way to proceed in a crisis. Statements or policies enunciated to the public during or after a crisis, such as, "We're not certain . . .," "We believe what occurred was . . . ," "The best information we have at this time is . . . ," are perfectly acceptable, as long as what is stated as fact and can stand a high degree of scrutiny.

6. Time. Time heals all things, even the worst nightmare of crisis. Although it might seem impossible, the fear will fade and normalcy will return, and the organization will be left wiser and stronger if the matter is handled properly. Civil litigation, if any, may linger on, regulatory concerns may become an issue, special budget problems may remain, but there is comfort in knowing that systems are in place to handle all of these, often out of the line of vision or interest of the event media.

All crises have a half-life and, while they never completely disappear, their salience starts to diminish and rapidly and progressively fades the day after the public begins to believe that the organization has the situation under control.

7. Finding the Best Path Through the Confusion and Risk. Doing the right and wise thing, showing poise under pressure and convincing others that you have chosen the right approach should be the three basic goals of a crisis administrator. Working effectively with the media is inherent in each of these goals.

CONCLUSION

When serious crisis confronts organizations, the perception of the response becomes a part of the response itself. Both must be handled to high professional standards.

 

Attachment 1

Checklist for Response to Media in a Crisis Situation

1. Pre-Notification

Does it make sense to pre-inform any particular group or individual before communicating with the media directly?

Individuals (family or colleagues of individuals who could be at risk or to whom a special obligation is owed)

Law Enforcement

Civil Defense

Board Members

Employees

Other Affected Persons

Medical/Public Health Providers

2. Notification List

Do we have a comprehensive list of media sources?

Major Newspapers

Local Newspaper

Local Radio

Think-piece Radio and Television (by special invitation)

Television Stations Through News Director, by Phone

3. Targeted Notification

Does it make sense to contact secondary communications sources?

Faith Community (via their bulletins or other publications)

Employee Meetings

Special Weekly or Biweekly Bulletin for Interested Parties

4. General Notification

For wide community distribution of press release or special board meeting, contact merchants or municipal groups that control a bulletin board that shares important community information to post the meeting date, time and place.

Establish an Internet Site.

5. Location

Identifying a location that permits adequate attendance, has technical support for overheads, video connections etc., has an adjacent room or place where individual interviews can be conducted subsequent to the release, if that's desired. (Triple check audio system.)

6. Coordinating Information Within the Organization

Is there consensus and clarity about what is to be conveyed by whom?

7. Coordinating Information Among Other Groups

Have you coordinated your general release with other principal public or private groups that have provided or intend to provide statements, i.e. health care institutions, regulatory agencies etc. Are you providing complimentary information from all organizations that may issue announcements or statements?

8. Legal Review

Has legal counsel reviewed what you intend to say? Have they identified points at which there should be special caution?

9. Basic Outline

Have you prepared handouts to give to each media source to support symmetry in reporting?

10. Public Responsiveness

Can you provide the media with a list of the major concerns relayed by the public, so media can respond to those concerns in their reports?

11. Expert Contact

Have you identified reliable experts the media can interview?

12. Timing

Can you generally accommodate media deadlines?

Attachment 2

Sample Press Release

THIS BRIEF PRESENTATION WILL BE FOLLOWED

BY A QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION

King Harold of England and his counselors will discuss the arrival of an unknown number of ships from the coast of Normandy in Southern England. Our understanding is that the force involves at least 3,000 Norman knights, although we're not certain of the exact number at this time. There has been some destruction of crops and municipal properties. We will have detailed information on damage at the Special Council Meeting.

Our understanding from local sheriffs is that there have been no serious casualties, either Norman or Saxon, and that bridges, roadways and the ports are intact. We are hopeful that agreement can be reached between Normans and Saxons and that commerce will return to normal within a fortnight.

More specific information updates will be provided at the Special Council Meeting described above.