Regardless of Te’o’s level of involvement, a closer examination of the situation outlines the failings of Notre Dame and the national media – and how getting caught up in the emotion of the story allowed it to spin out of control.

Keeping it Simple

Notre Dame held a press conference mere hours after the hoax became breaking news. The school’s athletic director indicated the school had conducted an exhaustive investigation into the claims. USAToday later reported that the investigation did not include interviewing Te’o or his family, nor did it examine phone records. The investigation included a search of social media sites that uncovered public Twitter posts alluding to a scheme, leading to the conclusion that Te’o was a victim.

The AD not only stood behind the linebacker, but openly wept about the “tragedy” and the “victim.”

Our own Carol Cookerly is famous for saying: “Sometimes the best interview is the one you don’t give.” In today’s media world, it’s easy to think that an elaborate response is required. In some situations, especially those with a lot of unanswered questions and pending investigations, it’s better to keep things simple.

Notre Dame has been no stranger to real tragedy. In 2010, a student was killed filming football practice when high winds toppled the film tower he was using. During the press conference, the same AD methodically described the accident and the school’s reaction, but shed no tears. That same year, a student at nearby St. Mary’s College committed suicide after accusing a Notre Dame football player of sexual assault. The university has been accused of a cover up and lack of investigation, marring the school’s image.

Te’o is not returning to Notre Dame, and there was no alleged misconduct by the school. Since the press conference, Te’o has admitted lying about the existence of the girlfriend to some degree. If it comes to light that he was a willing participant in the hoax – or worse – it would be yet another blow to the storied university’s reputation. Notre Dame would have been well served to issue a brief statement acknowledging the report, indicating the facts were still being investigated and the school was working to assist the Te’o family in this manner.

Fact Checking

The Deadspin article, which first brought the story to light, never had to happen. For months, a lie was perpetrated in the national media because most journalists covering the Manti Te’o story accepted information at face value and never questioned or investigated the veracity of statements made about his tale. Te’o’s story was Sports Illustrated’s October 1 cover story. The article was heartbreaking and inspiring, cementing Te’o as the tragic hero.

After the news of the hoax broke, author Pete Thamel admitted he could not find any references to the girlfriend in Lexis Nexis when fact-checking Te’o’s story. There was no obituary. There were no news articles about the supposed car crash.

Thamel wrote the story anyway, failing at the most basic function of his job: to obtain the truth. Thamel wasn’t alone. Numerous news outlets and reporters continued to tell the story, apparently with little or no effort to seek information beyond what was widely published.

Whatever the truth is, it’s a sad story. And, it’s one that will have lasting effects – not just for Te’o. Notre Dame and the reporter who highlighted Te’o’s story will serve as a reminder to all of us in communications to be careful, to be thoughtful and above all, to seek and tell the truth.

Image Credit: Neon Tommy

Do Your Research

Royal spymaster, Lord Varys, knows how to use information to his advantage. Knowing the kingdom’s secrets has kept him alive and in the King’s favor for many years.

Businesses, just like large kingdoms, have many moving parts, and often a lot of characters. Perhaps your business needs to engage clients in a survey, or maybe it’s as simple as reading the news regarding your top competitors.  It is impossible to create a successful business, much less a successful public relations campaign, without understanding your audience and competitors.

Know When to Stay Quiet

Queen Cersei’s son, Joffrey, has taken over the throne, though he’s not really the rightful heir. But, despite the rampant rumors about who the new King’s real father is, the Queen never publicly addresses them.

Our own Carol Cookerly is famous for saying: “Sometimes the best interview is the one you don’t give.” In today’s media world, it’s easy to think that responding to a reporter’s request for an interview is required.  But we think otherwise. In some situations, especially those with a lot of unanswered questions and pending investigations, sometimes saying nothing is more powerful than denying rumors.

Always Be Prepared

“Winter is Coming” is not only a major theme of the show, but also the Stark family motto. After many quiet years in the kingdom, things have suddenly gone downhill very quickly, and those who were unprepared are at a decided disadvantage.

The truth is you never know when your business may encounter its own crisis. Issues rarely pop up at a convenient time, making it all the more important to have an up-to-date, well-constructed crisis plan. All key stakeholders should have a copy and know how and when to mobilize.

Sometimes great lessons are found in the most unexpected places, so keep an open mind. What are some business lessons you’ve learned in unconventional ways?

It happens to the best of us, but an inappropriate or poorly written email can make or break a business deal or ruin a first impression. As communicators, we are held to a higher standard, so here are a few tips to help ensure you don’t lose a client, disappoint a supervisor or just generally make yourself look bad.

The dreaded “Reply All”
Before you even begin to respond ask yourself, “Who really needs to read this?” Very few emails actually warrant a blanket response. Even if you do decide to “reply all,” check the recipients one more time before sending. Just imagine the repercussions if you accidentally bad-mouth a client or your boss and send the email to them.

Whoops, wrong Sara
In a PR agency, you work with a number of clients, with long lists of contacts for each. It’s not uncommon for contacts from different companies to have similar names. And, it’s easy to confuse names when Outlook automatically populates the To field.

I have sent emails meant for a contact named Sara K. to our wonderful office assistant, also named Sara K. My colleague once invited a contact named Kate W., based in New York, to lunch instead of our very own Kate G.  Luckily, those mistakes are easy to fix.

Getting too personal
It sounds easy, but sometimes people just don’t think twice about what they write. There are things you can say to a colleague, that you would never say to a client. And, some things, you should just keep to yourself.  One of my cube mates recently worked with a reporter who shared way too much information about his personal life. Don’t be that person.

Don’t be so forward
While I think most of society has finally gotten over the need to forward emails of cute kitten and chain letters, it’s important to consider what you are forwarding.  Somewhere in a long chain of emails, you may have written something less than complimentary about the client.

Those red squiggly lines
Don’t ignore them! They are there for a reason. If you haven’t already, set your email account to automatically spell check before sending. Sometimes, even the spell check won’t save you, so be sure to thoroughly proof your emails. My favorite story comes from a former career counselor at my college who spoke of the email in which “public” in public relations was consistently spelled without an “L”—and a recent article on PR Daily showed that some of our peers are still falling victim to that particular typo.

Here are a few more tips:

• Beware of autocorrect. My phone even tries to auto correct my name. I never want to sign a client email as “Emily Rotund”.
• Don’t overuse ellipsis marks (…), abbreviations and acronyms. Please spell out “pls” and “thx.” Thanks.
• Use the high importance indicator sparingly. If you mark every email you send as “high importance,” people will assign it to the category of “no importance.”
• Email is great, but nothing beats the power of personal interaction. Pick up the phone, step away from your desk, meet for lunch. From time to time, employ a different method of communication.

If you do make a mistake like a misspelled name or including the wrong recipient, don’t panic: apologize. While it’s true that once you hit send, you no longer have direct control over that message or where it ends up, a simple apology can prevent your email error from ending up in anyone else’s inbox.  Forgetting a letter in your coworker’s last name will probably not require our expertise in issues management, a brief email acknowledging your mistake will be much appreciated by your clients and colleagues.

That elementary school Career Day wasn’t going to get me very far in the real world, so in college I embraced the fine art of interning. One miserable summer at a lawyer’s office was enough to tell me that I was not meant to be an attorney. During another internship, I spent time working for the Spring Hill College Communications Department. I was certain that I would spend my time filing and making coffee, but to my surprise, I actually practiced public relations. To this day, I think back to projects I worked on during that internship and the great advice from my supervisors. (Thanks Greg and Chris!)

There’s only so much you can learn in class, and day-to-day experience in the field is invaluable. Here at Cookerly, we love our interns. A lot. We also want them to learn as much as possible from their experience here. (That’s not to say there aren’t coffee and donut runs or afternoons of filing from time to time.) Some of our most recent interns share their tips on how to make the most of any internship:

• Grace Andruszkiewicz, summer 2011 intern: My advice is to put your all into everything. The purpose of interning is to learn things that you can’t learn in a classroom. If you just do the bare minimum, what is the point? Volunteer for extra projects and think ahead. 
• Ian Bridgeforth, summer 2011 intern: Making a mistake is not the end of the world. Have fun. 
• Mamie Cargile, assistant account executive and summer 2010 intern: Know how to be flexible. An important project might pop up, or you could be asked to stay late for an event. It’s important to be able to go with the flow and adapt to each situation. The third day of my internship I helped out at an event on a ranch. Few jobs will take you from the office one day to a farm the next, but be prepared for anything. 
• Chris Glazier, assistant account executive and fall 2010 intern: Performing well is the most important thing, but it’s also important to get to know the people you’re working with so they have an idea of who you are. Develop relationships, speak up in meetings and show up to events outside of work. You need to make an impression. We had one intern who never spoke. We would forget she was in meetings. Sadly, many people did not realize she was gone until it came up in a staff meeting .

No matter where you are an intern, ask questions. Be reliable. Dress appropriately. Speak up. Try to connect with your coworkers. Ask how you can help. Chris says it best: Do your best on every task assigned to you, no matter how mundane. Developing a reputation for reliably producing good work is invaluable.

Full disclosure here. I’m a mother to a very active, very hungry little boy. We never go anywhere without snacks. Carrots, apples, raisins, Cheerios, etc.  Check my purse, and every available compartment of our SUV, there are snacks hidden everywhere. Running out of food is bad news.

But, it has never once occurred to me to stop by McDonald’s to grab something for him to eat.  You see, my perception of McDonald’s is greasy and fattening, not healthy. Sure, I loved McDonald’s as a kid. Fries AND a free toy? How could you go wrong? But, that’s not something I’ve wanted to introduce to our little boy.

McDonald’s, however, is reaching out to people like me: busy moms who are short on time.  Moms talk to each other. We share tips and recipes, do’s and don’ts.  By taking mommy bloggers, a very influential group, on field trips to the farms that supply McDonald’s and creating special “invitation-only” groups for moms to join, they are working to change the way all moms see McDonald’s: as a healthier alternative, instead of a last resort.

By letting moms know that Happy Meal offerings now include apple slices and 100 calorie fries, it’s certainly a step in the right direction.  Will it work? It could. Maybe I’m not the best judge.

What companies have successfully changed the way you perceive them?