The last time I offered an opinion on this blog was to say that everyone should quit trying to assign blame for the Gulf oil spill and worry about fixing the leak. Obviously, nobody took my advice because the blame game was in full play throughout. With the clean up well underway and the leak apparently stopped, I think it is fair to say that BP has taken the brunt of the blame and perhaps more than its share. There are a myriad of others...

I was having lunch with an old friend from radio days recently and she asked me what I would do if I were in charge of public relations for BP. She was the fifth person to pose that question to me and I’m sure it’s a question that many of my colleagues in the industry have heard as well. I’ve also got a feeling if you ask ten PR people that question, you’ll get ten different answers. Maybe there will be similarities in the...

The oil rig disaster and resulting oil slick that threatens the Gulf Coast is the biggest test of a crisis communications plan that I have seen in years. Sure Toyota’s troubles have been unprecedented and attracted intense media scrutiny, but they don’t compare to the environmental impact that this BP spill may have on entire cities and industries that are still recovering from Hurricane Katrina. This event – precipitated by the...