A drama unfolding over a Midwest company's refusal to accept 23 million pounds of napalm last week is a key lesson in public affairs.
Last week, MWW/Agenda, Chicago, found itself in the midst of a national political battle concerning a client's decision that calls on follow-through and crisis management skills.
Despite months devoted to a successful community education plan headed by PR firm MWW, East Chicago, Ind.-based, Pollution Control Industries (PCI) said it would back out of a $2.5 million contract to recycle napalm. Napalm was used to create Vietnam War-era chemical weapons and has since been banned through several post-war international agreements.
Excelling in the sometimes acrid art of public affairs requires expertise in several PR disciplines and one key skill: follow through. But beware: follow-through often is confused with follow-up, a practice disdained by journalists who are pounded daily with queries about press releases. Keep in mind that follow-through means updating target audiences as an issue evolves and even contacting a reporter months after the initial story.
"In public relations, what people are used to is adhering to a program and a timeline, but public affairs isn't like that," says Christine F. LaPaille, senior VP of The MWW Group and GM of MWW/Agenda.
Representing such a company necessitates knowledge of government affairs, community outreach, media relations and crisis management, she says.
"During the past four months, PCI has been caught in a tug-of-war among various branches and departments of the United States government," says a press release about the April 14 announcement. "PCI has a proven track record as an environmentally sound manager of hazardous materials, yet we have been subject to an emotionally charged political confrontation that has toyed with the facts."
The PCI news conference came on the heels of breaking stories that PCI is refusing to accept the napalm and sent letters April 10 to the Navy and its contractor Battelle Memorial Institute to that effect.
The Navy and Battelle have yet to report their next move and the napalm was halted in New Mexico last week while en route to PCI's East Chicago headquarters. It was traveling from a storage area in California.
Meanwhile, MWW is helping PCI react to developments and is acting as a liaison to reporters and editors. MWW crafted the release concerning PCI's request to drop the napalm deal and has fielded hundreds of press queries. It will continue to represent PCI in upcoming public hearings concerning permits for its facilities.
Behind the PCI Scene
LaPaille told PR NEWS last week that PCI withdrew from the napalm agreement partly to limit potential damage to its image from a politically charged issue.
Rep. Rod Blagojevhich (D-Ill.) transformed the napalm deal into a public-safety controversy that's been the bedrock of his campaign for re-election. Thus, MMW and PCI found themselves countering his and others' politically motivated attacks.
MWW was hired earlier this year to help educate national and Chicago-area media and residents about its napalm recycling plans. Bob Campbell, PCI's president, visited local high school chemistry classes as part of the campaign to explain how the firm would recycle the chemical, which is less flammable than gasoline, into an alternative fuel.
Prior to the recent controversy, MWW's efforts helped PCI get its message to the public. The Chicago Tribune ran an editorial in January explaining PCI's stance.
Messages about its recent decision continue to dominate broadcast and print stories. MWW now is tasked with explaining PCI's decision to the press and following through on the grassroots efforts.
Immediate efforts include a continued dialogue with reporters at national media outlets such as BBC, ABC, L.A. Times and The Washington Post, and regional papers like the Chicago Tribune, Hammond Times, the Post Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times. All of these media outlets continue to cover the story.
Grassroots efforts include responding to residents' concerns, working with local and federal agencies, one-on-one meetings with journalists and continuing public education.
Backgrounder on Public Affairs
Industries, such as pharmaceutical companies and chemical manufacturers, rely on public affairs to build rapport with local media operations. These representatives have become a barometer for public policy debates and are a gateway to how the press pursues national controversies.
For example, public affairs was the key ingredient drug manufacturer Hoechst Marion Roussel used to deal with the Seldane controversy while attempting to transfer patient allegiance to a new drug, Allegra. Seldane was taken off the market this year after fatal drug interactions were attributed to the allergy medicine. (MWW, 312/853-3131; PCI, 219/397-3951; Naval Facilities Engineering, 703/325-2912)