Online Public Relations Thoughts

Now that the Supreme Court has overturned affirmative action, colleges and universities are left to struggle with the question of diversity.  Their reputations over time will be affected by how they answer it.  They could start by ending legacy admissions, which perpetuate unfairness and a uniformity in the student body.  They could blend application essays with socioeconomic selection and outreach to poorer high schools.  They could end reliance on SATs.  They could do a number of things but none will guarantee the diversity they are searching for.  It will take hard work in the admissions offices and still there will be no guarantee of equitable selection.  It is an issue with winners and losers and always will be without open admission.

The wreckage of the Titan submersible and the human remains lifted to the surface by a recovery ship are more than destruction.  They have obliterated the reputation of the company that built the Titan.  There is no way forward for the business with its founder and CEO among the dead.  Add to this the lawsuits that are sure to come and the investigation that has already started.  Few businesses could survive such a high profile flameout.  The CEO was cavalier about safety and ignored numerous warnings to thoroughly test the rig before sending it into the intense pressures at the bottom of the sea.  Everything he did was wrong and the company has gone down with him.  

What do you do with a symbol that no longer has meaning to the public?  This is the challenge that Europe is having with its empty churches. They are repurposing them into hotels, climbing venues, bars and dance halls. The original intent of the stained glass windows and soaring naves is lost, not to return.  One symbol after another falls out of favor and becomes lost in time.  What meant something important to one generation is of no import to another.  Communicators must be aware of the passage of time and constantly refresh symbols and metaphors listeners.  Persuasion requires seeing the world through other's eyes.

Meta has added new teen and parental supervision features to Instagram, but they require a teenager to opt in and for the teen to allow parents to regulate viewing time.  The obvious question is how many teens are going to allow their parents to monitor them?  Meta's rules seem more like a fig leaf for its reputation than a positive control placed on teen viewing.  But, who knows?  Meta is in a difficult position, caught between the viewers it needs and growing evidence that the young are injured by content on social media. It is one of the unsolved dilemmas of the social media age and almost certainly, government will get involved.  How do you modulate First Amendment rights in an era of ubiquitous communication and protect those who aren't ready for the chaos of Free Speech?  It's an interesting challenge.

Wagner Group CEO Yevgeny Prigozhin was a loose cannon since the start of the conflict in Ukraine but Putin tolerated him because he kept the front stable and he actually won territory back from the Ukrainians.  Now that he failed in an attempted coup against Putin, he is a persona non grata and a target for state media to revile.  Such are the whip changes of official public opinion in a dictatorship.  There is no nuance, no examination of causes, no hearing from both sides.  The public is told to change and in Russia, they do for the most part.  Putin still has a strong hold on power and can continue to dictate what Russians will see and hear.  Meanwhile, Ukrainians felt relief for a few hours and dared to hope, but there is no sign that the war is ending.  It will grind on, Wagner Group or not.  

This man is a case of a true believer lost in his cause and unlikely to surface again.  No amount of communication, persuasion or argument is going to change his mind.  Thus, the government had no choice but give him a long sentence in prison.  He is a reminder, as if communicators needed one, that words can only go so far in changing minds. The brain must be receptive to counter-argument and when it isn't, there is nothing to be done.  In prison, anything is possible.  He could start listening or he could dive deeper into conspiracy thinking.  He has 12.5 years to figure it out.  If in his eyes, he was a hero of Jan. 6, there will be no way to reach him.  But, if he recognizes the wrong in his actions, that could be a first step to a normal life when he gets out.  

Can you call this civility on the floor of Congress?  The two congresswomen are in a catfight over who gets to place articles of impeachment against President Biden to a vote. Publicly labeling another congresswoman a bitch is disturbing.  Marjorie Taylor Greene doesn't belong in Congress because of her behavior, but she will remain there until voted out of office. Meanwhile, she is a disrupter who makes the Speaker's role untenable even though her support won the Speaker's position in the first place.  One must wonder how long we are going to suffer from the arrogance of such people.

It is a good leader who sets expectations for what an organization will do.  That is what Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell achieved in his Congressional hearing.  He let it be known that nearly all of the Fed members expect to raise rates again this year.  There should be no surprises then when the Fed does act.  The only speculation will be whether it is a quarter or half point.  The markets can now take the boost in stride and everyone down to householders shopping for mortgages know that rates will rise later in the year.  The increase should happen peacefully without Sturm und Drang, and the markets adjust automatically.  Even though many will not like the boost, they won't be surprised.  

The FBI and the American government have a PR challenge from a former hostage in Africa.  The American missionary was seized by Islamic extremists in Niger and held for six years.  His family said the FBI withheld information about negotiations with the terrorists and caused needless suffering.  The victim, Jeff Woodke, had given up hope of release and was praying for death to keep his family from pain any longer.  It's an affecting story but one that only partially puts the FBI and American government in a bad light.  Rescuing citizens from hostage takers is delicate and onerous work.  One must find them first then establish communications then respond to demands.  It takes months and sometimes, years even when the perpetrators are known, such as the Russians arresting the Wall Street Journal reporter for spying.  Woodke's complaints have some merit but might have unnecessarily thrust the FBI into a bad light.  

Former president Trump might have a lock on Republican voters but a key constituency has begun to show cracks in supporting him.  These are people who served under him -- notably former AG Bill Barr, former national security adviser John Bolton and Trump's chief of staff, John Kelly.  These were men who supported Trump to the end and are now distancing themselves.  They have come to understand that Trumps' narcissism is dangerous to democracy.  And, they are vocal.  They are not hiding their dislike for his behavior.  They are forming a tiny but potentially powerful communications group.  It remains to be seen whether their views gain traction in the months to come, but they are first-person witnesses to Trump's behavior and that is damaging enough.  

The Los Angeles Dodgers have stepped into the middle of a controversy through inept handling of a Pride Night celebrating LGBTQ+ people. The Dodgers had invited then disinvited "a satirical LGBTQ+ group called the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence."  These are men dressed in faux nun's drag.  Under fierce pressure from LGTBQ+ groups, the Dodgers reversed course and invited the "nuns" back to the stadium to be honored for their charitable work.  This sparked an uproar from Catholic bishops and conservative Catholics who called the move blasphemy.  The Dodgers are now in a can't-win situation and no amount of PR can find a path through the cockup.  The team will have to hope the faux pas will be forgotten as the season unfolds.  The lesson is to be more circumspect about the handling of sensitive issues well before announcing your intentions.  

 Boris Johnson's sudden resignation from parliament apparently was an attempt to beat the rap recommended by a committee investigating his behavior as a Prime Minister.  The committee concluded in a just-released report that Johnson had misled parliament over breaches of his own COVID-19  lockdown rules, and it had proposed suspension of Johnson for long enough to spark a by-election.  Johnson has reacted with fury but his popularity has waned and unlike Trump, he isn't carrying voters with him.  Thus ends the political career of one of Britain's more controversial PMs. The lesson once again is to avoid lying to the public in the internet age.  The truth will come out whether from a cell phone camera or a social media post.  Johnson knew that, or, if he didn't, he does now.  

When is a law not a law?  When no one pays attention to it and it is not enforced.  Such is the case with the Hatch Act.  "The law bars civil servants from politicking during their day jobs..."  The problem is that press secretaries for both Biden and Trump ignored it during their tenure or used it selectively to avoid answering questions.  They haven't been punished, but simply warned by a letter.  That is not even a slap on the wrist.  The current press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, uses the act to avoid reporters' questions, but she violated it during the campaign season when she referred often to MAGA Republicans.  She said she was cleared to use the term, but the Office of Special Counsel disagreed.  So far, nothing has happened and it is unlikely it ever will.  

Today will be one of media frenzy in Miami as former president Trump is arraigned. The chances of Trump being legally processed without protests are dim.  Reporters from the world over are ready for anything, including violence.  One must ask how the government plans to conduct a fair trial with such intense media coverage.  It won't be easy and picking a fair-minded jury pool will be a challenge.  There are times when communications are not helpful, and this is one.  Journalists jostling one another for a better position to see him entering or leaving the courthouse are infantile.  TV reporters doing standups in front of the building provide little to viewers since the action is all inside and cameras are banned in the courtroom.  But they want to be there just in case.  Such is the nature of a free press.

What do you say when your user community revolts against you?  This is the position in which Reddit finds itself.  More than 6,000 Reddit communities have gone dark for 48 hours in protest of the company's new API.  Several dozen have said they will stay dark until the company reverts to its original policy.  This is a significant blow to Reddit, which depends on users to carry its content forward.  The company has a choice -- give in or gut it out.  So far, Reddit has chosen the latter course, but should it blink, it will give the advantage to its rebellious user groups.  It is not a good position to be in.  One wonders what the company said to its user groups before it imposed changes.  Was it enough?  Was it not listening as it spoke?  Does it even care what  users think?  

Former president Trump is using his indictment for keeping classified material as leverage to raise more campaign funds.  He knows how to market even when he is in trouble.  And, his base of believers will open their checkbooks and send cash.  Dozens of politicians on both sides of the aisle wish they had a similar opportunity.  But, they don't. Trump is a special case.  He is a manufacturer of grievances, a narcissist and a sloganeer.  Millions follow him blindly.  He speaks to their concerns and no amount of personal trouble he gets into is enough to lift blindfolds from their eyes.  If Trump prevail in court, he will be almost untouchable, and that is what he is betting on.  

Ukraine President Zelenskiy is biting the hand that helps keep his country from Russian occupation.  He took on international aid agencies for failing to provide prompt assistance to the regions affected by the dam break.  He ought to know that Ukraine is not the only crisis facing the world, but he is acting like Ukraine is the first among equals.  And, well he should since he is responsible for keeping his country free, but there are ways to communicate that do not offend while making the point.  He seems to have erred this time in his public complaints.  He is a leader under great stress so there is an excuse for his words, but aid agencies aren't going to react any faster because of them.  

Ukraine and Russia are pointing fingers at each other over the breaching of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric dam.  Their messages have confused responsibility for the incident.  Meanwhile, thousands of victims have to move to high ground while the flood washes away their homes.  Some one is to blame, but who?  We may never know.  The charge and counter charge has created a standoff and each side will be convinced that it is innocent.  It has only hardened resolve on both sides and peace is farther than ever away.  

 Industry executives are welcoming Apple's entry into virtual reality headsets.  They are saying it validates the field.  But does it?  It is a goggle device with a separate battery, closed operating system and an eye-watering price of $3,499.  Apple is trusting its fan base to go along with the limitations and to buy, buy, buy.  If it succeeds, the company will lift the market from the decades-long doldrums it has been stuck in.  If it fails, the field will be set back for years to come.  It's a gamble for the company and the industry.  Analysts will be watching sales of the headsets closely and any hint of market trouble will be ballyhooed widely. Even the mighty Apple can stumble. 

Saudi Arabia's decision to cut oil supply for the summer is sending a message.  The kingdom stands on its own and is independent of what the rest of the world needs in energy.  The Saudis have the oil: The world wants it.  Be prepared to pay.  While this short-term strategy will work for the country, it will fail in the long run.  Higher fuel prices will stimulate EV sales and lower overall demand.  The Saudis know this certainly and are riding the curve downward.  There are still decades to go before the kingdom is no longer a factor in energy needs, but the process has started.  In pursuit of price stability, they will eventually have to cut more production, then more still.

 House Speaker Kevin McCarthy trusted his middle of the road Republicans to give him a win along with centrist Democrats.  Both acted wisely and provided a glimmer of a path forward for Congress -- appealing to the middle with messages of consensus.  This will anger Hard Right Republicans and Hard Left Democrats, but it can get the country's work done, providing budgets and appropriations and other laws.  If McCarthy succeeds, he will be a friend of Biden who believes in making deals to move legislation forward.  It is a statement that no one gets everything, but all get something.  Would it be too much to ask Congress to move forward in this manner?  

The California power company, Pacific Gas and Electric, has escaped criminal charges for the role of its equipment in a major forest fire.  Apparently a pine tree marked for removal but not cut down had fallen across its lines and sparked the blaze.  The utility has already paid a $50 million fine related to the fire but the district attorney's of the counties affected wanted more -- criminal negligence.  They didn't get it.  The message that PG&E sent after the decision was focused on supporting the good faith judgements of its workers.  That might seem hollow for those who lost everything in the fire, but there is little more the company can say.  There are times when no messages suffice for events that have occurred.  This is one.