Crisis Management

As they wade into the 2015 pool communicators will be on the hook to show positive returns for a growing number of disciplines, ranging from online analytics to content marketing to mobile apps.

The PR fails are easy to remember, the positive PR stories, not so much. But we jogged our memories to come up with a handful of examples of effective communications and solid messaging in 2014.

It may have seemed like a good idea, at least on paper. Aggregate pictures and posts as a way to remind users of some of their milestones this past year. But the effort backfired miserably.

Rolling Stone inserted its disputed rape story back into national headlines by announcing that it has asked Columbia Journalism School to perform an independent inquiry into the editorial process behind the article. The journalism school will produce a report on the article, and Rolling Stone will publish that report unedited on its website.

Sony Pictures has started to stop the hemorrhaging resulting from the crisis. But the film studio remains on the defensive.

The best way to prepare for a crisis is to plan for it in advance. Here are six steps you can take that will help you when the dark days descend.

Sony officially cancelled the theatrical release of The Interview on Wednesday, responding decisively to the turmoil following a message posted a day earlier by a hacker group calling itself “Guardians of Peace,” which evoked the September 11th attacks and warned theatergoers to stay away from the movie.

The Sony Pictures hacking scandal is getting ugly. The computer breach has turned into a PR nightmare for the Hollywood studio, with the company’s reputation now hanging in the balance.

Like the annual “Swallows” of Capistrano, each year brings its share of PR crises and scandals, and 2014 was no exception.

While all organizations need some level of public trust in order to continue to operate, the American Red Cross and Uber are dealing with severe issues regarding trust and reputation.