Views on News, public relations • May 28th, 2008

Scott squeals

by Chris Lato

Maybe that’s not a fair headline, but I have really mixed feelings about the news that Scott McClellan, a former member of the Bush inner circle, has written a highly critical tell-all about his time as the President’s press secretary. Heck, the Drudge Report had ‘Scott the Snitch’ as its giant headline today.

My objections are not necessarily what you may think at first.

For starters, will I read the book? You betcha. I’m a big fan of the modern political memoir, particularly from someone who handled communications for the president. It’s coming from a guy who made it to the top of my profession, and I also think it’s unfair to dismiss what the guy has to say without actually reading it first.

The book isn’t coming out until next week, but based on initial press reports, some of McClellan’s writing rings true. As someone who did partisan political communications in a previous life, I absolutely buy into his assertions that sometimes he was lied to and/or kept in the dark to ensure he delivered the right spin on behalf of the White House.

Yet the opportunism on display here is unseemly. It strikes me as piling onto President Bush to make a buck. And, perhaps sensing which way the political winds are blowing, this is McClellan’s attempt to stay professionally viable once the Democrats take over the world in the 2008 elections.

But who’d want to hire Scott McClellan? That’s one of my problems here – he taints it for others responsible for handling public relations for sensitive, high-profile clients. It’s a matter of trust.

Maybe McClellan’s conscience got the better of him. Fair enough. I’d have an easier time buying that line if McClellan had quit, instead of getting pushed out of the White House. Writing a critical tell-all memoir is the ultimate ‘up yours’ when you’re mad at a former boss. It may pay well, but how could anyone trust him with sensitive media relations matters in the future?

It’s not unreasonable to expect a code of honor to be adhered to when one is responsible for handling sensitive issues like, oh, I dunno, the inner workings of the White House. To not even wait until after President Bush is out of the White House is tacky and invites hard questioning, which McClellan should answer to.

I hope he’s getting paid well for this. Perhaps the DNC can have McClellan speak at their convention this summer. That would be some ‘get’ – having President Bush’s former press secretary bashing the evil Republicans! Zell Miller and Joe Lieberman would have nothing on Scott McClellan.

The McClellan flap reminds me of when David Brock, a onetime right-wing hatchet man, turned around and suddenly decided to come out as an ardent critic of the right. Christopher Hitchens dismantles Brock far better than I ever could, but suffice it to say that this sort of self-serving flip-flopping reeks of a dishonorable ability to head whichever way the political winds are blowing.

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2008 Primaries, Views on News • May 23rd, 2008

The summer of Dem discontent approaches

by Chris Lato

To everyone who wrote off Hillary Clinton (me included) – this story will give you pause and then make you wonder how the Dems will get out of this fine mess they’ve gotten themselves into.

Can some of the same folks who argued in 2000 that Al Gore should have been president because he won the popular vote turn around eight years later and argue that the popular vote doesn’t matter? Will Florida be disenfranchised yet again?The mind reels.

First, Hillary has to deliver as the article suggests she can. Also, the goofiness of the Florida and Michigan votes will have to play a role.

But really, this just muddies the waters even more. And with Barack Obama flailing around, trying to find his way on foreign policy and showing off his relative inexperience, this promises to be a long, hot summer for the Democratic Party.

The Obama story, in particular, illustrates the dangers of sounding off without thinking first, without having the facts in front of you, without noting that your answer is a work in progress, something to indicate your concern but that a more complete answer will be forthcoming. The snowball just keeps rolling downhill, getting bigger and bigger till it rolls right over you.

But in an age where admitting a mistake is tantamount to political suicide, and a soundbite can sink a campaign, what other choice does Obama have?

Actually, it can be done but it requires strict message discipline and a willingness to step up and admit, at the very least, that Obama didn’t fully form his initial answer(s). Acknowledge the issue is more complex than a simple yes-or-no answer, past statements may have been misconstrued, and that American interests would of course be protected when meeting with foreign leaders who have the potential or interest in doing America any sort of harm. The end goal is always peace and prosperity for all, but the concerns of America and its allies will always come first.

Or something like that.

That won’t get away from the questions that continue to linger, including Obama’s support of the ridiculous notion of unconditional meetings with unfriendly foreign leaders, but at least it starts pointing Obama in the right direction. It gives him room to keep developing his answer and gain some ground.

Obama intended to pander to the members of the Bush-bashing left who view the president as a dim-bulb cowboy - but Obama overreached and will now have to pay the price for that short-sightedness and naivete.

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Branding Politix, Messaging, Speeches, public relations • May 1st, 2008

Mission accomplished?

by Chris Lato

I bring this up not to argue about Iraq – plenty of bloggers across the political spectrum do that daily.

This is a question of communications, public relations, and event management – an example of a colossal misfire that really could have been avoided had cooler heads prevailed.

I’m talking about one of the less illustrious anniversaries for the Bush administration. Remember the ‘Mission Accomplished’ banner flown five years ago today on the USS Abraham Lincoln? President Bush made his dramatic entrance on the aircraft carrier and declared that “Major combat operations in Iraq have ended.”

Oops.

Again, I’m not arguing Iraq here. But let’s break down the communications missteps.

#1 - That damn banner. The administration’s opponents have embraced it as a sign of arrogance and hubris, and rammed it down their collective throat for five years now. It’s hard to argue the point. It was an overreaching PR blunder on an occasion that called for restraint.

Was it a bad decision? You betcha. An administration that generally understands and adheres to message discipline really stepped in it, with the perception being that the war was over way, WAY before it really was. It was politically tone-deaf.

#2-The post-banner mangling. The White House offered a string of reasons for the banner, none of which rang true. The more excuses and contradictory reasons you offer, well, the less truthful and forthcoming you appear - especially if you can’t offer a definitive response ASAP and be done with it.

That won’t stop your enemies from frothing at the mouth, but at least you have put your response out there, quickly and on the record, and can point to that every time the issue comes up again. You have the force and clarity of your argument on your side.

#3-The speech. What can I say? I’m sure President Bush didn’t write it, but clearly his staff was all charged up over what they saw as a big victory and overreached wildly.

Again, considering the setting and what should have been a fairly solemn occasion, it was treated as a rah-rah moment that, to this day, we’re still talking about in a less-than-favorable light.

One poorly conceived press event that resonates for years. You could make the argument that no one could have predicted where things would be five years later, but good PR consultation offers a sense of where things may go, the positives and negatives behind what you do to engage the press. For whatever reason, that apparently didn’t happen here, but the price for that shortsightedness is still being paid.

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Views on News • April 22nd, 2008

Snow drifts over to CNN

by Chris Lato

Tony Snow, who spent 10 years with the Fox News Channel before a brief stint as White House Press Secretary, has been named a new ‘conservative commentator’ at CNN.

Good for him. Snow has struggled with cancer but appears to be on the rebound. He is an entertaining and smart guy even if you disagree with him politically. I’ve seen him speak in person, and he is an engaging personality.

It’s funny to read the talkbacker comments at the CNN website. You’d think Satan just signed a long-term contract.

CNN was called the Clinton News Network back in the day, and is vilified by the right for perceived bias. The Tony Snow hiring is one way to address that.

It’s always interesting to see how former ‘flacks’ are treated as they move back into the news business. As I have stated before, I have some personal experience with this, and Snow is being criticized by the left as being a ‘paid liar for Bush’ who has no credibility.

Well, I guess that discounts George Stephanopoulos. And James Carville. And Diane Sawyer. And…the list goes on and on and on.

First of all, Snow is being billed as a ‘commentator.’ He’s not going to be an anchor. Everyone who pays attention to these things knows his background, so take what he says with a grain of salt if you choose to do so.

Also, Snow is someone who has ‘real world’ experience. He’s been behind the podium on behalf of a Presidential administration. He has the level of experience that precious few have. He has unique insight. That is a valuable thing and should help inform Snow’s commentary. He has more credibility than 90% of the ‘observers’ who are out there pitching their wares on the news channels. He knows what he is talking about.

The fact is, everyone in the news biz brings their own biases to the table. Some cover them up better than others, but they all have biases whether they choose to admit it or not.

In addition, it is virtually impossible to be ‘objective.’ That’s a goofy notion born in journalism school classrooms.

However, it is very possible to be ‘fair.’ There is a difference, and honest reporters will acknowledge that.

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Leadership, Views on News, public relations • March 12th, 2008

‘Eliot Ness’ in a big mess

by Chris Lato

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Former New York Attorney General, and current Governor, Eliot Spitzer, is tied to a prostitution scandal that is almost guaranteed to blow up his political career.

I say ‘almost guaranteed’ because, at the time of this writing, he hasn’t yet resigned. It would be remarkable, but not unprecedented, if he decided to stay and fight. Undoubtedly, the steady drip-drip-drip of details that will emerge about Spitzer’s conduct would leave his office weakened to the point of irrelevance. At some point Spitzer has to confront the condition of New York versus the condition of his ego and do the right thing.

You can read the latest here. You can read the details straight from the court documents here. And you can read a deeply nutty defense of Spitzer here. And then there’s the partisan-minded folk who say it’s all George W. Bush’s fault that Spitzer got caught allegedly paying for sex.
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2008 Primaries, Fundraising, Leadership, Messaging • March 6th, 2008

The value of endorsements

by Chris Lato

No big shock – President Bush has endorsed John McCain for President.

This is how the game is played, even though the two have had a stormy relationship in the past, particularly in the 2000 campaign. The Bush team was accused of dirty tricks that helped knock McCain out of the race.

However, McCain soldiered on and even campaigned for Bush’s re-election in 2004. As an aside, I had the pleasure of being in McCain’s presence for a 2004 Bush event in Madison – we walked him from the Historical Museum to a speaking engagement and he handled the hecklers in style. He has a forceful, even intimidating presence, but he dutifully did everything that was asked of him without complaint.

Consider the value of endorsements. Much like yard signs, endorsements don’t vote. Some say they hold little to no value. I disagree, to a point.
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