Stories by Seth Arenstein

A new survey from PRNEWS shows the industry upbeat about the future. In the survey of 200 PR pros last month, 88 percent told us PR and communication will come back as strong if not stronger after the pandemic. Still, there’s concern for the future and diversity & inclusion content is lacking in industry messaging.

As brand communicators and PR firms plan to reopen their offices, the burden on internal communicators to set expectations seems great. Here’s a quick look at some of the areas they’ll need to consider communicating as offices reopen.

Confusion over coronavirus continues. Are things getting better or worse? Is the glass half full or half empty? It depends on whom you listen to? Cases are rising in 18 states. They’re declining in 22 states. Is the rise in testing the reason for increases in cases? Can someone without a political agenda tell us? Please.

In a week of public apologies, few have loomed larger than that of General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The nation’s top soldier apparently was transfixed reading social media attacks on him and President Trump’s photo op at St. John’s Episcopal Church. His apology was good, though slightly lacking.

Communicators and the companies they represent are wrestling with what to communicate, if anything, about diversity and inclusion. In the end, the best response seems to be the authentic one, interviews with PR pros indicate.

While it didn’t make a splash, there was coronavirus news yesterday. In truth, WHO made a bit of a mess with its press briefing. Things got so bad, it had to clarify some of what it said Monday during a briefing Tuesday. In PR terms, it was a headache.

In a wide-ranging interview, PRSA chair T. Garland Stansell argues that diversity and inclusion should be year-round concerns for communicators. In addition, he believes PR pros have a vital role to play in combatting the scourge of misinformation about coronavirus treatments. “People are looking for direction and leadership, and it is our job to be truthful, transparent, and trustworthy,” he says.

Yet another example of police brutality was caught on video. This time it was against a white man, in Buffalo, NY. Complicating the issue is that police claim their response statement was crafted as they looked at a second video, as opposed to one that went viral and created a crisis. From a PR standpoint, the incident raises issues about honest communication and how long to wait before you respond to a crisis.

Short of apologizing for promising no coronavirus-related layoffs in late March, Edelman chief Richard Edelman is conducting a picture-perfect layoff operation. The world’s largest PR firm announced layoffs of nearly 400 staffers today.

As part of our coronavirus interview series, we asked Cathy Del Colle, the first female president in Burrelles’ 132-year history about the state of the analytics business during the pandemic. In a wide-ranging interview, Dell Colle touched on client needs now and in the future.