This week's PR Roundup looks at UnitedHealthcare's tragic company crisis, UNESCO's new report on content creators and misinformation, and social media surpassing TV as a purchase driver.
CEO’s Tragic Death Yields Crisis Response
What happened: On Wednesday, breaking news reports relayed a shocking report of a mid-day shooting in midtown Manhattan. A lone gunman shot the victim, 50-year old UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, as he arrived at the New York Hilton Midtown on West 54th Street for an investors’ meeting.
The gunman quickly escaped into an adjacent alleyway and into the streets of the city.
The shooting appears to be targeted, after police found bullet casings with the words “delay” and “deny” on them. According to The New York Times, “while the meaning of the message was not immediately clear, “Delay, Deny, Defend” is the title of a 2010 book by Jay M. Feinman, a professor emeritus at Rutgers Law School, that discusses ways that health insurance companies avoid paying for patients’ claims.”
The untimely death seemed to shake business leaders and armchair analysts everywhere, including adjacent industries, such as security, who had to field media questions surrounding the event.
Lori Olin, VP of Communications at Allied Universal, shared this thought-provoking post on LinkedIn about the difficulty of the day from her position.
Communication lessons: In the wake of unexpected tragedy, particularly one featuring a very prevalent company leader, communications teams play a vital role. They not only need to manage the flow of information but also demonstrate the organization’s empathy and support for everyone affected.
Jason Wakeford, Associate Partner at Clarity and member of its Global Crisis Council, says that swift action to create a clear internal and external message is essential. He also notes that effective communication in crisis moments upholds the values of compassion and responsibility.
“The first step is convening the crisis response team, including communications, HR, legal and senior leadership,” Wakeford says. “To prevent speculation or misinformation, issuing a timely statement is critical, even if it only acknowledges the situation, provides basic facts and commits to sharing further updates as they are available. Internal communication must always take priority so employees hear the news directly from leadership, not external sources.”
Wakeford also notes the best way to avoid misinformation and confusion is to create a pipeline with the experts involved.
“Coordinating communications with external stakeholders, such as law enforcement, ensures consistency and avoids conflicting messages.”
Content Creators Neglecting Fact Checking
What happened: While establishing trust in your content creators is essential, it’s also important to have a system in place to evaluate their content for accuracy.
Last week, UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization of 194 member states) released its “Behind the Screens” survey, a global analysis of digital content creators’ motivations and practices and of the challenges they face.
A key point from the survey showed that 62% of creators do not participate in “rigorous and systematic fact-checking” of information prior to sharing it. However, 73% would like to be trained how to do so.
“Digital content creators have acquired an important place in the information ecosystem, engaging millions of people with cultural, social or political news. But many are struggling in the face of disinformation and online hate speech and calling for more training,” says Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO’s Director-General.
Another key finding reveals that creators have difficulty determining the best criteria for assessing the credibility of information they find online. In fact, 42% of respondents said they used “the number of ‘likes’ and ‘shares’ a post had received” on social media as the main indicator; 21% percent were happy to share content with their audiences if it had been shared with them “by friends they trusted;" and 19% said they relied “on the reputation” of the original author or publisher of content.
Mainstream news media was found to be the third most common source (36.9%) for content creators, after their own experience and their own research and interviews.
Communication learnings: Megan Hueter, Managing Director of Everywhere (a MikeWorldWide agency), says it’s extremely important for brands and agencies to prioritize creators with a track record of accuracy, professionalism and trustworthiness.
“We do an extensive brand safety check that goes back as far as a decade, and analyze historically shared content (including any controversial opinions) before we ever surface a suggested partner,” Hueter says.
However, not everything can be caught in the vetting process, particularly when you are in the day-to-day of a project. Hueter says brands and agencies can take simple steps to avoid the sharing of misinformation.
“When you're partnering with a creator, it's important to set clear expectations up front about accuracy, provide them with vetted factual information to work with, and then do the legwork of fact checking their content before it goes live,” she notes.
She also adds that working with a trusted agency that has experience establishing and managing these long-term relationships can be helpful and important.
Social Media Leads as the Top Purchase Motivator
What happened: DISQO’s second annual Consumer Trends report revealed that social media has overtaken TV as a consumer’s top purchase driver, with 43% of people citing social media and 41% citing TV as a purchase motivator.
In fact, Millennials (+2pps) and Gen X (+3pps) groups both increased their responsiveness to social ads over the last year while Gen Z remains steady year-over-year, at 62%.
Other key trends include:
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Brand power: Sixty percent of consumers rank personal experience with a brand as the top factor shaping their brand perception.
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Gen X and Boomers especially value brand experience, with these groups more likely than Gen Z to consider brand experience in their purchases.
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Research: Product research is increasingly conducted across various channels, with 50% of consumers using search engines, 32% relying on retailer websites, and 28% on social media.
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Inflation (63%) and economic uncertainty (52%) remain prominent concerns, particularly among Gen X and Boomers.
Communication lessons: Stacy Perrus, Brand and Communications Director, DISQO, says it’s important for communicators to understand where consumers’ minds are.
“Everyone may be tired of hearing about ‘inflation’ and the ‘post-pandemic environment,’ but the reality is that these factors will persist into 2025. This means that we need to continue our efforts to develop messaging that takes these concerns into account,” Perrus says.
This data may also cause brands to give content creators and influencers a second look when it comes to teasing their products on social platforms.
“PR has long relied on influencers to help sway public opinion, but as influencer marketing grows, we need to factor in increasing consumer awareness and potential mistrust,” Perrus says. “Despite an influx of influencer marketing, or maybe because of it, we see mixed acceptance of influencer advertising. In 2025 we must approach our campaigns transparently, align our brands with the right partner, and adopt a multifaceted campaign where influencers are part of a broader mix.”
PR Roundup Bonus: 2025 Color of the Year
For all those Gen Z’ers saying millennial neutrals are too drab, check out Pantone’s newly released Color of the Year for 2025: Mocha Mousse, a warm, comforting rich brown, which Pantone notes “answers our desire for comfort.”
Nicole Schuman is Managing Editor at PRNEWS.