Kobe's Nimble Public Relations Once Again Saves the Day

Personally, I think that Kobe handled it really well. I know he did not mean any hate or bigotry in the things he said, but was just frustrated with the game and those were the words that happen to come to his mind in that moment. If he had used any other slur words, depending upon their severity, nobody would have cared. For him to immediately come out and clarify what he meant and express his support of the groups that were against him, I think that was the best thing he could do. If I was a sponsor of the Lakers or Kobe, I would have accepted his apology, and moved on from it.

If I was an advisor to Kobe, I would have advised him that it was okay for him to appeal the fine, but not to fight back too much. The more this stayed relevant, and the more it was talked about, the less likely it would quickly go away. He is very lucky that it could have been a lot worse.

Shilling the Morning Joe

This interview debacle was at the fault of everyone who was involved. MSNBC should have made known, and could have easily, casually done so, the relationship it had with Starbucks during the interview with the CEO. Personally, I feel if they had just quietly mentioned it in the beginning, nobody would have even noticed or thought anything of it.

If I was the public relations manager for MSNBC, I would have stressed the importance of A) disclosing the relationship the network had with Starbucks and B) talk to Howard Shultz in the same manner as any other guest or interviewee would be talked to. The sponsorship by Starbucks is not a problem until they become exempt from the same scrutiny and examination as other news makers.

If I was the public relations manager for Starbucks, I would have told my CEO to be prepared to be interviewed the same way as any other guest would be and that our sponsorship of the show did not give us a free pass. But then again, the public relations manager, the CEO, and the news director were probably all involved with planning the interview to be a promotional spot for the company.

Kenneth Cole's Egyptian "Twagedy"

I understand that Kenneth didn't mean anything harmful by his tweet. He could have easily accomplished the same thing by tweeting his support for the people of Cairo, and not saying anything at all about his product line. His support for the people would have captured public attention, as well as the media play. This would then bring awareness to what he was trying to sell.

A simple policy could easily be followed for situations like this in the future. If you want to acknowledge of political or worldly event, do not attach anything sales related to it. Simply speak like normal people do, but don't sound like you are trying to gain something from it.

Playing "Chicken" with Gay Marriage

Yes, it is true that free speech is something we all get to enjoy in America, and rightly so. With that said, we still have to watch what we say for the fear of offending others and then consequently getting some kind of reaction to that. I think that it is fine that Dan is against the gay community, but he had to be smart enough to realize that the gay community use to eat his food, right? For example, he would not have said that he was racist or that he was against the African-American community, because he knows that there would be immediate losses at stake. He should have put more thought into what he tried to accomplish by making his views known.

If was working for Dan, I would have told him that while it is okay for him to have an opinion, he shouldn't make it known because there are a lot of people that will disagree with him, and who will choose not to patronize his company.

Drowning Out the Drone Attacks

I think the industry did a very good job trying to ease people's fear of death by drone, by comparing it to how many people die in car crashes everyday. With everything else that is happening during the war and the methods of attacks used, it is rediculous for people to get upset about the remotely piloted vehicles.

If I was running the public relations endeavors of the drone industry, I would have publicized more about the benefits and future uses of drones other than in the military. There his a whole future of advancement that drones can bring to the world, and it is important that the industry does as much as possible to silence the people, in a positive way, who are trying to slow that advancement.

I Hate You, I'm Leaving, Where's My Check

I would characterize Greg Smith's ethics of airing his grievances with his company as... drastic. I completely understand having frustrations with the place you work, and wanting to go public with it, especially if there is a lot of wrong doing involved. I have been in those shoes many times. With that said, there is a reason I have never done that. For the sake of not looking crazy, or bitter, I don't think that Smith should have published such a letter.

I believe that Goldman Sachs did as best of a job they could have given their situation by publishing the memo asking employees to stay polite. It was also good that they said they would make a good faith effort to improve the quality of the work environment.

The best advice that I can give Goldman Sachs is create a more open environment for it's employees. Give everyone an avenue to speak their peace inside the business, before they go crazy and tell the rest of the world about it. They better the treat their employees, the better they will behave.

Blogger Backlash Crushes ConAgra Conclave

Ketchum broke the cardinal rule about public relations... always tell the truth! They should not have allowed ConAgra to proceed with such a crazy plan to fool people into doing something they clearly did not want to do in the first place. Media people do not like it when they are lied to, so they should have known that this was going to blow up in their faces. They should have expected such a negative reaction.

I do not think there was a problem with inviting these bloggers to the restaurant for a dinner and tasting. With that said, they should invited bloggers and writers who actually cover the food being served, as opposed to ones who write about something completely different. If ConAgra had invited writers and bloggers who actually write consistently about the food being served, they would have been more likely to enjoy it and therefore promote it through their media platforms.

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