As I sit here typing, the song ‘What a difference a day makes’ must be being downloaded by almost...
So, at last the American elections have started to liven up a bit. Until now it has all been the well choreographed conferences with thousands of cheering devotees proudly waving the star spangled banner in the hope that their chosen leader will become or remain president. Lots of gleaming white smiles and powerful rhetoric with both sides claiming they will make the country a better place. But, oh dear, it’s all gone a bit pear shaped in the Romney camp at a rather critical moment. With less than eight weeks to go, Romney has been caught on camera making disparaging remarks about half the American population!
He was filmed secretly at a supporters' dinner making a speech where he claimed that 47% of Americans who back the president do not pay income tax. Ah, I hear you cry but this was a private fundraiser not for public consumption. But when the stakes are this high, nothing is off limits. Even if your spokesperson isn’t planning on running for President of the USA, it is essential that they understand that any off the cuff remark can be captured and sent round the internet in a jiffy. Technology now dictates how a company’s reputation can be won or lost at the click of a button.
It’s so easy if the environment is relaxed and friendly to open up a little to what appears to be a group of like minded people. But it’s a risk not worth taking. It may seem unfair but that’s the way it is, and your spokespeople need to be aware of the key messages they can say and the delicate pieces of company information they must not share with the outside world. Romney’s PR guru must be slumped in a corner right now wondering how on earth they can overcome this setback.
No doubt more mudslinging will follow and the race certainly isn’t over yet. However for us mere mortals it is a simple case of remembering the golden rule of managing the media - Nothing is EVER ‘off the record’.
