If ever you, or your company, is faced with a PR crisis two cases over the last couple of weeks would give you some very good examples of what, and what not to do.
The first is the Tony Veitch affair. It’s hard to imagine a more spectacular and complete fall from grace than what we have seen from one of our (former) glamour boys of broadcasting. Basic human nature has meant that we have all been fascinated and captivated by every aspect of this case; and will continue to do so until the police investigation is complete.
As news started to unfold on what had happened, it became apparent that TVNZ and Radioworks needed to get into damage control mode and protect their respective patches. And it would be fair to say that the potential for damage for both parties was almost indescribable. Advertiser dollars, sponsorship, brand image and staff morale are just some of the areas if the business that were at risk.
It was obvious from the moment full details of the assault emerged that Veitch was toast. How on earth could he go back on air when so much was at stake? I, for one, would not have been able to watch or listen to a man who was the subject of such violent accusations, so the outcome was a foregone conclusion.
But life under our employment relations legislation is not straightforward so both TVNZ and The Radio Network had to tread delicately and slowly as they avoided making a wrong move that could result in having to make a big severance payout. While this was happening, both organisaitons had to defend their positions in relation to how much they knew about the case. Neither appeared to have anything to hide and handled things really well in my opinion. Apart from a few road blocks at the start, the flow of information was steady and factual – exactly how it should be. TVNZ has had a bit of flack about how long it took to react. I disagree with this. Before you go public in a case as complex and multi-layered as this, you need to get fully acquainted with the facts and talk to all parties involved. Rush this and you run the risk of getting off the wrong foot from the start, making life even harder for yourself.
Being our national broadcaster, TVNZ seems to be a sitting target for media commentators all around the country and typically they have borne the brunt of all manner of criticism from as high up as the Prime Minister. I find it hard to believe that the managers at TVNZ had any idea about the full details of the Tony Veitch case. If they did they would have known that it would eventually come back and haunt them and acted accordingly. So all those detractors should give them a break and some benefit of doubt.
As it turned out, the end came quickly for Tony Veitch. He fell on his sword and that was the end of that. John Anderson, TVNZ’s chairman, summed it up well by saying it is now a matter for the police. A PR nightmare well handled and a final statement that summed up TVNZ’s position on an ex-employee.
Meanwhile, in the corridors of power, Winston Peters is giving us the ultimate demonstration on how to be your own worst enemy. As denial after denial has been published about donations being received from billionaire donors, the truth of the matter is starting to emerge and it now seems that large sums of money have changed hands for legal expenses – money Winston Peters says he had no idea about. Feel a new Tui billboard coming on?
If Mr Peters didn’t know about vast sums of money being paid to his party, how can we take him seriously as a leader of our country. Equally, if he did know and hasn’t fronted up, we are hardly going to trust him for much longer. It appears Winston Peters is caught between a rock and a very hard place.
Whatever happened, there is now a general murkiness around Peters and his party. And as the country gears up for what is shaping up to be a fascinating election, maybe we are seeing the demise of one of our most notorious survivors.
By appearing to hide the facts, Winston may well have fought his last PR fight. |
