Reena Ninan

For crisis communications and media professionals: How do you navigate advising clients or upper management when they opt for crisis spin messaging over addressing the actual root cause of the crisis? 🤔 We've witnessed various scenarios where organizations either successfully managed this approach or faced challenges. From President Biden's health concerns to NYC Mayor Adam's scandals, and companies like Boeing, Meta, Nike, Tesla, Samsung, and the Secret Service-the importance of handling crises transparently cannot be overstated, especially if you want to maintain your credibility, brand, customers, clients and stakeholders.📰💼 #CrisisCommunications #MediaPros #PublicRelations #Transparency #CrisisManagement

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The Wall Street Journal editor Paul Beckett’s account in the Columbia Journalism Review of how the Journal mobilized to free Evan Gershkovich after 16th months as a prisoner in Russia is a tour de force and “a free press triumph” and well worth the read. Some excerpts: A phone call to a senior government official who knows this terrain provided the answer: “There are times to be quiet and there are times to be loud—and this is a time to be loud.” “Yet on days like August 1 (when he was freed), the values that underpin democracy and are the foundation of a free press triumph.” “Few countries that are not democracies could point to such care for their ordinary citizens abroad, let alone noncitizens imprisoned for their political beliefs.” “news organizations must continue to assess and calibrate the risks their reporters face when operating in dangerous terrain. Perhaps they need to make more hard-nosed choices on whether it is necessary to deploy in person to countries that target journalists or whether that terrain can effectively be covered from outside, given advances in technology and communications.” “And they could ensure that press freedom around the world—an issue so fundamental to their existence that it is often taken for granted—is a subject they cover as if their livelihoods and their liberty depended on it.” https://lnkd.in/etZTVCeB

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The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism annual report out today is - as usual - chocful of really useful data and analysis. In this epic year of more-elections-than-ever, one stat stands out in particular: News avoidance is now hitting an average of 39%. That's a serious challenge. AI, podcasts, social, subscription news vs. free online - yes, these are all interesting dimensions too, but when people are actively tuning out of the news to such an extent, it raises questions: - how much the attention economy (doomscrolling from one insipid frivolous video to another) is actually draining people's energy and focus from the really important things happening in their town, region, country and the wider world? - what is the future of news consumption? even emerging trends such as short clips (on Tik-Tok and LinkedIn) and dedicated deep-dives (on SubStack and the like) don't necessarily point the way to a broad future. - how best to sustain media plurality that also nourishes a varied media diet? Given how geopolitics is likely to get more divisive in the immediate years ahead, media companies really need to work on bringing people (or all generations) back to the news. And we would all do well to discuss the news a bit more with family, friends and colleagues. https://lnkd.in/eqtPUX-6

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As I start thinking about long-term communications planning, this article from Sean Gibbons and Tristan Mohabir is energizing and motivating. It's time (frankly, it has been for a while) to move away from broadcast models and towards targeted community building. I'm looking forward to more from this series of articles from The Communications Network! https://lnkd.in/eVgS6raH

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The topic of corrections comes up a lot in comms. There’s some new research on this that is kind of interesting. Here is an excerpt from an article summarizing the findings: “…people generally trust journalists when they confirm claims to be true but are more distrusting when journalists correct false claims. Some linguistics and social science theories suggest that people intuitively understand social expectations not to be negative. Being disagreeable, like when pointing out someone else’s lie or error, carries with it a risk of backlash. We reasoned that it follows that corrections are held to a different, more critical standard than confirmations. Attempts to debunk can trigger doubts about journalists’ honesty and motives. In other words, if you’re providing a correction, you’re being a bit of a spoilsport, and that could negatively affect how you are viewed.” #mediarelations #psychology #sociology #PR

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This article from Columbia Journalism Review is fascinating, and an argument for the importance of a reputation management communication plan. There are volumes authored by PR pros advising against ignoring reporters inquiries, yet this article documents how frequently it happens. Throughout my career, I can count on one hand the number of times I have made a calculated decision not to respond to a media request, and 99.9% of the time it was after multiple engagements with a reporter who repeatedly misrepresented or distorted information (even if not intentionally). I suspect, more often than not, reporters get ghosted because the brand is caught off guard. They haven't planned how they will respond in a reputation crisis. Or haven't socialized the planned response with stakeholders. If the PR team is haggling with executives and lawyers on what to say or how to say it when the reporters' questions start rolling in, the opportunity to frame the narrative is quickly lost. Thanks for sharing the article Jennifer Johnson Avril! https://lnkd.in/gYmTA9CW

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How should the media respond to any falsehoods without amplifying them? What’s the best way to report on anti-democratic rhetoric while maintaining impartiality? And how can newsrooms build trust with an audience that’s increasingly fractured along ideological lines?

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A few messy thoughts on what beehiiv's new media collective (aka financial and operational support for journalists joining the platform from legacy media outlets) means for communicators: 1. "New media" like newsletter and podcasts is increasingly just...media. 2. Substack has effectively branded itself as an online salon, a place for culture and conversations. beehiiv has felt like its swashbuckling younger brother, more saloon than salon. Does this represent a shift in the audiences beehiiv is trying to attract? Will it work? 3. Over-reliance on ads is what's killed the legacy media that's causing journalists to move to newsletters. So can ads underpin this new era, or is Substack's subscription-based model more sustainable?

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As our world gets more fraught and complex, audiences are increasingly choosing news sources which are more visual, reports are more watched, less read, with YouTube continuing its rise. The implications of this trend for deep understanding of difficult issues is worth pondering. More people are concerned about how to grapple with the rising torrent of fake news, and many having doubts about how AI might be deployed by newsrooms. Edelman has partnered with the Reuters Institute for this annual report as we are all in the business of communicating and good, credible and trusted information is critical to everyone in that process

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This week, a frenzied year of elections around the world culminates with the Presidential polls in the United States on November 5, which turns on a knife-edge. Against this backdrop, a special report on Trust by my colleagues is especially worth a read. It shows that governments in many parts of the world- especially in developed countries - are distrusted, and thought to be deliberately misleading their people! Another key finding is a troubling skepticism about the electoral process itself, particularly among Gen Z voters. Significantly, the findings show that the less people have a habit of reading the news and keeping themselves informed about what’s going on in the world, the more they tend to be sceptical about their political systems, reflecting views that may be as strongly held as they are weakly backed-up. The greater the doubts in the electoral system, the more likely that polls results might be contested, giving rise to further polarisation in society. These are findings that anyone who believes in the rule of law and rational public discourse should be concerned about. You can see the detailed report here :

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A useful handbook for quick reference and a reminder to all journalists covering the #US elections to ensure information integrity. This is worth a look. As in absorb this before #election day #journalists #newsroom #misinformation #disinformation https://lnkd.in/g4heDxVP

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SPOILER ALERT 🚨🚨🚨 I don't think TikTok is going anywhere. But, the debate happening among policymakers makes for pretty good conversation. In my latest thought piece for H/Advisors Abernathy, I examined the newscycle to see how a potential #TikToK ban could play a big role in the 2024 election cycle, rankle #BigTech data collection and lay the groundwork for more #dataprivacy advocacy. https://bit.ly/T1kT0kban

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In today’s information age, the role of media is paramount in shaping public opinion and guiding the collective consciousness. However, beneath the surface lies a network of covert operations and hidden agendas that manipulate the news we consume. This article delves deep into the mechanisms through which media outlets covertly influence narratives and control the flow of information. The Hidden Hand: Media Manipulation Tactics https://lnkd.in/eQjQywmE

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On Today's Episode of Most Impactful Journalists: John Peter Zenger Discover how John Peter Zenger, a courageous printer, and immigrant, challenged corruption and fought for press freedom in America with the landmark "Zenger Trial." His legacy continues to inspire journalists today. #JournalismHistory #PressFreedom #Facts #lpujournalism #Media #lpu #lpuuniversity #lpudiaries #lpucampus #thinkbig

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Looking for a weekend binge?! Check out this new podcast for disruptive conversations from the disruptor himself, Phil Fersht! First 3 episodes are live and ready for YOU! From limitless leadership to the big, the bold, and the beautiful (😉) of #AI. It can all be found here. ⬇️ #BeTheDisruptor #HFSReinvent #MakingMoments

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For this podcast, the Confident Retirement, there's a twist: I was the one interviewed, not the one asking the questions. (I like it better the other way - but that was fun - thanks for inviting me on, Kristopher Flammang CRPC®AIF®BFA®) Oh - and I'm not retiring :) Some of the things we talked about: * My early journalism career change to being a juvenile probation office for three years; • Why and how the Business Observer has made a transtions to #digitalfirst — and why we keep the focus on that; and • The lessons I've learned from interviewing hundreds of entrepreneurs ands business owners Take a listen!

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Defending Digital Campaigns Michael Kaiser sheds light on the tactics used by bad actors in election interference, emphasizing their goal could be to sow chaos and apathy rather than influence voting. “They’re trying to divide us at another level,” he said. “For some bad actors, the misinformation and disinformation is not about how you vote. It's just that we're divided.” Learn more in Paige Gross’s article in States Newsroom about combating misinformation and disinformation in the upcoming elections. #Misinformation #Disinformation #Election2024 #ArtificialIntelligence #AI https://lnkd.in/eBypvBP6

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