What Were They Thinking?: Crisis Communication: The Good, the Bad, and the Totally Clueless
ISBN: 9780813545530
Platform/Publisher: JSTOR / Rutgers University Press
Digital rights: Users: unlimited; Printing: chapter; Download: chapter
Subjects: Crisis management -- United States -- Case studies; Public relations -- United States -- Case studies; Communication;

Some corporations spend millions of dollars on so-called "crisis communication plans." Others offer lip service, avoiding the subject like the plague. They simply hope for the best, praying that they never face a crisis. Either way, as Steve Adubato says, "Wishful thinking is no substitute for a strategic plan."

Nationally recognized communication coach and four-time Emmy Awardûwinning broadcaster Steve Adubato has been teaching, writing, and thinking about comm¡unication, leadership, and crisis communication for nearly two decades. In What Were They Thinking? Adubato examines twenty-two controversial and complex public relations and media mishaps, many of which were played out in public. Among cases and people discussed are:

The Johnson & Johnson Tylenol scare: Perhaps the best crisis management ever Don Imus: Sometimes saying "sorry" is too little too late Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales: Authority does not put you above questioning Bill O'Reilly: Know when to stop defending yourself and save face Former EPA Administrator Christie Whitman: Proof that your written words can come back to haunt you Hurricane Katrina: A natural disaster that led to a larger governmental disaster The Catholic Church's pedophilia scandal: Denial won't get rid of the skeletons in your closet

Arranged in short chapters detailing each case individually, the book provides a brief history of the topics and answers the questions: Who got it right? Who got it wrong? What can the rest of us learn from them?


STEVE ADUBATO, Ph.D., is a Rutgers University lecturer, four-time Emmy Award-winning television anchor for WNET/Channel 13 (PBS), and newspaper columnist. Steve has been an expert commentator for MSNBC, CNBC, CNN, C-Span, Court TV, the TODAY Show, and the FOX News Channel. Through his firm Stand & Deliver, Steve has provided hands-on crisis communication coaching for numerous corporations and organizations. He is also a motivational speaker and the author of two books, Speak from the Heart: Be Yourself and Get Results and Make the Connection: Improve Your Communication at Work and at Home (Rutgers University Press).
hidden image for function call