By Dan Stoneking, writing for Homeland Security Today It seems like generative AI has reached the venerable level of the Oxford Comma debate. I actually published a strategic communications column about the Oxford Comma a few years ago where I definitively proved that being for or against was missing the point. It is actually a matter of choosing when, where and how to use […]
Paddy Power, an Irish betting company, launched this hilarious commercial to target a behavior that has become too normalized — sports fans on Twitter confidently criticizing professional athletes from the comfort of their sofas. Shot in a mock-documentary style, the ad follows a “Social Squad” that tracks down outspoken Twitter users who posted bold takes […]
“The Curious Case of Sidd Finch” is famous not just as a baseball story but as a landmark experiment in narrative, credibility, and mass‑media trust. Written by George Plimpton and published in the April 1, 1985 issue of Sports Illustrated, the piece reads like a meticulously reported feature about a mystical, 28‑year‑old Mets pitching prospect who can […]
Introduction by Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications Cat YouTube? Happy Dog TV? Relax My Cat? DOGTV? If you’re thinking, “What on earth does Cat YouTube have to do with crisis communications?”, that’s exactly why this New York Times piece belongs here. Because at its core, it’s a story about audience. We spend our professional lives trying […]
By Tony Jaques, Director of Issue Outcomes Pty Ltd. Outrage moves faster than facts. And “just stay silent” is rarely neutral. This article offers a practical way to decide whether to speak on contentious issues and, more importantly, how to make that call without sounding performative or losing trust. It lays out a shared-values framework […]
By Julia Minson, writing for The New York Times A Harvard researcher describes a fraught conversation about immigration with her conservative, veteran father-in-law and shares the behavioral-science playbook that kept it constructive. The takeaway isn’t “win the argument,” but keep the relationship intact. She explains why curiosity beats persuasion, how to signal respect while disagreeing […]
By Bruce M. Hennes, Hennes Communications In a moment when “just doing my job” is becoming an all-purpose alibi, this piece is a reminder that every profession has a line it can’t cross. Lawyers just happen to swear it out loud. Yes, it’s written with attorneys in mind, but the lessons are universal: when the […]
Introduction by Bruce Hennes, Hennes Communications… Every issue of Crisis Communications Today is written with one hope: to teach and give our readers usable, do-able information. Unfortunately, we know the reality many of you live with every day: the threat of a mass shooting is no longer theoretical for city halls, schools, colleges, hospitals and […]
By Victor Fiorello, writing for Philadelphia Magazine… I have a thick skin. You have to if you decide to be a journalist, particularly these days, when the hatred and vitriol against the media is palpable, endemic, and fostered by some of the most powerful people in the world. You add to that the cesspool that […]
By Christine Haughney Dare-Bryan, writing for Provoke Media PR officials offer their greatest wisdom on how to lead through angry times. CHICAGO — There’s no debate that society is living through an “age of rage” — from the murder of health care executives to the polarizing political debates that dominate news headlines. But at Provoke […]