PR DISASTERS
Busters scandal tops PR disasters
The Roastbusters scandal and the botulism bungle have topped 2013’ s list of the country’s worst public relations disasters.
Wellington- based BlacklandPR placed the Government’s state asset sales pitch at No 5 on the list.
The company began releasing a list of the year’s worst PR disasters according to complexity, emotion and the size of the PR challenge last year.
The Roastbusters scandal came in at No 1, scoring 28 out of 30.
BlacklandPR director Mark Blackham said the emotions sparked by the issue made it the toughest lenge of the year.
‘‘ Sex and morality made most talked about and charged issue.
‘‘ We call these ‘ black hole’ issues. They draw in and consume everything near them, including the light of reason – in this case the police and other individuals.’’
At No 2 the Fonterra botulism incident, scoring 26, was labelled ‘‘ an own goal’’.
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‘‘ Fonterra’s product recall came a close second due to the international danger posed by potentially lethal bacteria, and the risk to New Zealand’s reputation,’’ Blackham said.
‘‘ What made the challenge really remarkable was that it was completely Fonterra’s own doing. It sounded the alarm on something that did not exist.’’
Blackham said the issues that tended to spark public debate involved sex, fairness, gender, and lifestyle.
More than half of the top 12 issues were government- related, which was a higher proportion than last year.
He said in the past few years an increasing number of issues had become national talking points where the people involved didn’t expect them to. ‘‘ I think Air NZ and the tattoos [ the national carrier rejected a woman with a Maori tattoo as a potential hostess] is probably a case in point. They would have no reason to have thought that was going to come up. Top PR disasters for 2013:1. NZ Police – Roast Busters 2. Fonterra – ‘‘ Botulism’’ recall 3. John Key – GCSB 4. Min. Primary Industry – Snapper
5. NZ Treasury – State asset sales 6. EQC – Privacy breach 7. Waikato DHB – Fluoride 8. NZ Post – Service changes 9. Len Brown – Affair 10. Banking Industry – Loan to value ratios 11. NZOG – Pike River payouts 12. AirNZ – Rejected tattoo
‘‘[ Former National MP Aaron] Gilmore probably would never have thought his little clash in the restaurant would have ended up as [ a PR disaster].’’
BlacklandPR the list either.
‘‘ One of our land Post.’’
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