Ronnie's Blog Spot

What's been learned....maybe?

NASA has a new issue to contend with in terms of crisis communication in the aftermath of the Lisa Nowak affair. I am certain everyone here is familiar with the story of the now former astronaut who traveled from Houston to Orlando to confront her rival for the affections of another astronaut in a now famous or infamous showdown in the Orlando Airport.

A NASA crisis has usually involved some disaster in space – not on the ground. And its crisis communication skills have clearly improved between the time of the 1986 Challenger disaster and the 2003 Columbia explosion. Both tragedies involved multiple deaths; but when the Challenger blew up; NASA officials were evasive and secretive. Seventeen years later, NASA was open and upfront about what happened and its own investigations into the incident.

Open and upfront seems to the model that NASA chose to use in handling the Lisa Nowak incident. Immediately after Nowak was arrested, director Michael Coats issued a statement that said NASA was "deeply saddened by this tragic event.” Coats also made it known that Nowak was “officially on 30-day leave.” Since, then, of course, Nowak has been dropped from the astronaut program.
But NASA went further to divulge its plans to review psychological screen assessments of astronauts and to review procedures to determine if any changes need to be made. That was an obvious step to take given that if Nowak had engaged in similar behavior while on a space mission, the impact of her actions could have been even more devastating.
So in response to one of the questions raised by Jennifer -- What other important factors, other than commitment to stakeholders, would be important in handling a crisis and in helping an organization return to a “new normal” after a crisis? – This is what I have to add in regards to NASA. NASA has a wide range of stakeholders and it is important to assure all concerned of two things – that they had compassion for Nowak as a member of the NASA family and that they will take steps to keep this kind of personal imbalance on the part of a NASA public figure from occurring again. The first statement issued by NASA made reference to their concern for the “safety and well-being of Lisa,” a statement that showed public concern for her as a person. NASA’s new normal, of course, will be to show all its stakeholders that it is looking to see if there are any loopholes in NASA procedures that need to be closed so this type of incident doesn’t happen again.
On another note, and to look for an answer to one of the other questions raised by Jennifer on an organization which has had a crisis and whether information about poor ethical decisions prior to the crisis – what comes to mind for me is Jet Blue. I guess I would consider poor communications akin to an ethical dilemma in this day and age and that is definitely what nailed Jet Blue on Valentine’s Day were the hundreds of flights that were cancelled and the thousands of passengers who were left stranded on the tarmac for hours. The end result, of course, was many angry passengers and Jet Blue double and triple time to try and make up for the mistakes. Company CEO David Neeleman was everywhere – on talk shows, in the newspapers and even on his own Jet Blue blog to offer apologies and information about Jet Blue’s new passenger Bill or Rights. Some say Jet Blue lost this battle; in a white paper written by OneUpWeb.com, it was noted that Business Week Magazine dropped Jet blue for its list of “25 Client Pleasing Brands” Jet Blue had been fourth on the list.

posted by Ronnie @ 11:45 AM 0 comments

Media Ownership

Who owns what is an interesting question. Although theoretically it appears that there are more options available (via the internet) the reality is that the media continues to be big business with just a handful of owners – and profits are the motivating factor. The Chicago Tribune, one of the oldest and most venerable of newspapers -- was sold just a few days to a real estate developer – who has acknowledged that he is not really interested in news – but he is interested in making money. But do people in Chicago really care. Apparently not, according to a Los Angeles Times articles posted online as I write this. (http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-mood4apr04,1,6048822.story?coll=la-headlines-business) The article notes that what moves people is not who owns the paper – or even if the paper publishes. But if the city’s baseball team is sold – something that has been hinted at – that stirs people’s passions.
A few things to comment upon – the most recent O.J. scandal about how he would have done it if he had done it. I still find it interesting to look at how that appalling sweeps week special came into being from the big boys – and girls – at Fox. But it was the affiliates who balked at showing the special and forced Fox sovereign Rupert Murdoch to cancel what even he labeled an “ill-considered project.” So at times the voice of reason can be heard – and even listened to and heeded.
And again returning to who owns what? It may be couched in other language but media monopoly does appear to be the name of the game. Who are our real media moguls – General Electric? Disney? At least Time Warner started out as separate media companies. The FCC doesn’t help either, with regulations that permit one company to own three stations in a market where there are 18 stations. How many markets have 18 stations anyway? Gainesville? Jacksonville? How do you define that market anyway in this day of cable and satellite? And in which language do you do your counting In English? Does it count if as in Los Angeles or New York you have Spanish TV, Chinese TV, Russian or Vietnamese TV? Or in Detroit, Arabic?
Finally, that article on the morning shows goes right to the heart of what the morning shows are about. They are full of fluff and they are full of fun and offer very little of substance. But they do entertain. My morning show of choice when I do watch something is Today. And I have taken to watching it whenever I am in a hotel overnight. I love getting up in the morning with a bit more time to spare and watching Katie and Matt, now Meredith and Matt do their thing. What they put on the air is like the Living sections of the newspapers. I am entertained and amused, especially because it looks like they – Meredith and Matt – are having so much fun doing what they do and talking to the people they invite on the show. But truthfully, I have not focused on how much of what is aired is pertinent to the business holdings of the company that owns NBC – General Electric. They’re not pitching light bulbs, but then again neither does GE that much these days. That article has given me something to think about and the next time I tune into Today, I will still enjoy it, but perhaps with a more critical eye.

posted by Ronnie @ 3:12 PM 0 comments