Our Blog: where do you stand?

PR Backfire

By: Susan Iskiwitch | 11/01/2007

Last week FEMA staged a fake news conference in order to publicize its response to the wildfires in California where Vice Admiral Harvey Johnson “briefed” a group of “reporters.” The reporters were actually FEMA employees, many of whom worked in the public relations department, and with only 15 minutes advance notice to the media, outlets did not have the time to send reporters.

Instead of canceling the news conference when media failed to show up (or giving a briefing without taking questions), FEMA "reporters posed questions such as, "Are you happy with FEMA's response so far?"

Outlets like MSNBC and Fox News carried the news conference live, not realizing the lack of authenticity. When the truth was uncovered, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said, “I think it was one of the dumbest and most inappropriate things I've seen since I've been in government.” In addition, FEMA External Affairs Director Pat Philbun will not be promoted as expected – he set the event in motion and acted as one of the reporters.

Still recovering from a damaged reputation following its response to Hurricane Katrina, FEMA's "press conference" did not help the organization's reputation.

The fallout for FEMA is huge, but not beyond belief. In the highest levels of government, public relations is extremely important – the reputations of America's agencies and leaders depend on credibility. One mismanaged situation can follow an agency for years.

In the world of public relations, last week's news conference would be a “don't.”

Posted in Strategic Public Relations, Public Relations