From Adrian J. Rivera, writing for The New York Times… Every so often, something so awful and senseless happens that it’s hard to fully absorb it. An apartment building collapses as residents sleep within. A movie star’s prop gun fires a real bullet on a film set, killing a young mother. A concert crowd morphs […]
From our colleague in Australia, Tony Jaques, director of Issue Outcomes Pty Ltd… There’s a good reason why legal advice is important in crisis management. Because just about every crisis or potential crisis has a legal component. But at the same time just about no crisis or potential crisis is ever solely about legal matters. Failure to recognise that leads to […]
By Stephanie York, JD, Hennes Communications Q: Why should a local school district, an independent or parochial school reach out to a crisis communications firm? A: Quick – What’s the single highest priority for a superintendent, head or board president? It’s not education. It’s safety. And just one part of that safety net is making […]
By Thom Fladung, Hennes Communications Attorney Andy Phillips, like many folks, looks back a bit wistfully at the “good old days.” “I wish it was back in the day where I could go home at 6 o’clock and sit down with the paper for a half hour,” says Phillips, whose practice at von Briesen & […]
The “debate” over critical race theory – really, more often a shouting match – shows no sign of ending soon. As the New York Times noted in this thorough primer, the decades-old theory based on extensive scholarship continues making “national and international headlines and is a target for talking heads. Culture wars over critical race theory have turned school […]
Editor’s Note: This piece originally ran in the February 2018 of our Crisis Management Today newsletter. We thought it worthwhile to run again. A frequent concern at Hennes Communications before and during the work we do for clients is to make certain we understand who our client actually is. In most situations, it’s an institution, […]
John Guilfoil writes… The Astroworld Tragedy is gut-wrenching. Media reporting about it, especially a New York Times story today, reminds us how important professional journalism is to finding the truth behind a major incident. In the story, a source tells the Times that Houston Police Chief Troy Finner shared concerns about crowd control directly with performer Travis […]
Art Solomon writes… Aaron Rodgers arguably is the best quarterback in the National Football League, but also he is one of many athletes who should attend a PR 101 class. A basic PR rule that Rodgers broke is never to lie or mislead the media. The Green Bay Packers’ star denies he did. Yet, his […]
From the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats… Effective public communication can help prevent attacks on crowded places by encouraging reporting. It can also reduce the impact of attacks that it was not possible to prevent by informing the public about how to protect themselves. Despite this, there has historically been limited research […]
David Ball, writing for PR News, hits it on the head… With the return of HBO’s “Succession” next month, I remember at least one teachable communication moment from the second season. In episode six, a magazine writer approaches the leaders of fictitious Waystar Royco with a story of sexual harassment and abuse within the company. The story […]