“Micky Arison should take ownership and get in front of the story,” said Boardroom’s president, Julie Talenfeld, in response to how Costa and Carnival should have responded to the Jan. 13th deadly accident. The current PR approach has both Costa and Carnival’s Doral headquarters under fire – especially after reports of the company offering shipwreck survivors a 30% discount on their next cruise. Media around the world has picked up the story – giving Carnival yet another crisis. CBS Morning show expressed amazement at the offer and the New York Post branded it as “tactless.”

The Miami Hearld reached out to our very own, Julie Talenfeld, for her expert advice and was quoted in today’s article, “Carnival Cruise Lines faces a hostile PR tide.” Click here to read full article.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal attacks the media for its latest mistake since handing out free content on the Web in the 1990’s. The author makes a clever analogy to professional sports teams writing, “Ask the community to contribute players. For instance, instead of using only highly paid pros on the baseball diamond, try adding a citizen shortstop. And how about enlisting bloggers to serve as coaches?”

This analogy works because unlike your typical law or medical profession where it takes years of schooling and formal training to gain recognition in society, journalists and athletes are judged by their skill level. Does that mean we should let them play the field?

Due to recent newspaper budget cutbacks and confusion among publishers about their role, some newspapers are turning to “citizen journalists” to fill space. The term “coffee shop journalism” has also been coined as quite a few papers are closing their doors and instructing displaced and disgruntled reporters to their local coffee shop to get a sense of what the caffeine-crazed citizen thinks is news worthy…

Locally focused reporting is key to any publication’s success, however the way to achieve this is not to take on unqualified sources, instead these pubs should be hiring more trained journalists and ensuring they have adequate time for reporting. The author ends the article saying, “News organizations can use all the citizens they can get – in the bleachers, not on the field of play.”

To read the WSJ article, click here.

While the partnership has invested and managed dozens of hotels for the past 30 years, this is their first project developed from the ground up. Recently, the Miami Herald took notice of the new Comfort Suites and did a story for the Business Section. Click here to read the entire article.

The holidays created a time for giving. On New Year’s Eve, we reflected on past mistakes and resolved to be better for 2012.

Here at Boardroom, the protocol of the season got us thinking about the protocol of networking. When we network, our objective is simple  — we want something.

But the holidays remind us that relationships, networking ones too, are about a give-and-take exchange. Remembering that spirit of the season, forget about what you can get out of the relationship. Focus on what you have to give.

Here’s a simple tip that can help you revamp your networking strategies, whether on the web or at the next annual New Year’s cocktail party: be interested, not interesting. Yes, keep your business card in tow; but rather than focus on yourself, really listen to the other person.

The best networks are those of mutual benefits where everybody wins. It’s time to tap in! Find out what makes the other person tick. Sincerely inquire on how you can help foster and support their needs.

That’s our New Year’s resolution.

So here’s to making 2012 a time of giving and connecting, whether it be in our networks of co-workers, family or friends.

Here at Boardroom we know the importance of company morale both on and off – line. We use Facebook to interact with each other, our clients and our network of contacts. We post pictures, links to articles, fun facts and tips. One thing you’ll never catch us doing – talking negatively about each other or our work place. With an intimate group of 14, we interact like a family and have no need to lash out on Facebook or other social networking sites.

In a world consumed by social media and technology, few companies can say the same.

A recent Wall Street Journal article highlights employees who are fighting back after being  fired or disciplined for bad-mouthing their employers on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. In recent months, disgruntled employees have started to recognize their rights and are actively seeking to solve their very modern predicament by using the law that kick-started the U.S. labor movement: the National Labor Relations Act of 1935.

This law protects employee’s freedom of speech when complaining about pay, safety and other working conditions. It does NOT protect against simple gossip and griping. The NLRB, a federal agency that enforces the law and decides whether employees’ complaints have merit, has jumped on board to represent these employees.

Of the 113 complaints the NLRB has received from employees regarding social media issues since May, about half have sufficient merit for them to intervene.  Intervene, yes. Overturn the original decision, not so much. There is no guarantee that the NLRB will be able to save your career, below are a few examples of recent employee’s rants on Facebook and their outcome:

A Frito-Lay warehouse employee was fired after writing on Facebook he was ‘a hair away from setting it off in that b—-,’ apparently referring to the warehouse – the NLRB stated that his language was not protected.

A paramedic was fired after calling her supervisor a ‘scumbag’ on Facebook from her home computer – the NLRB stated that this was protected language because the employee was venting during an online discussion among other employees about supervisory action.

(more…)

What’s worse than being a liar? Falsely – and knowingly – accusing someone else of being one.

Completely unconnected yet intrinsically linked, both Penn State and Syracuse universities are under fire for child molestation charges surrounding athletic coaches.  While the charges against former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky have been hovering publicly over the university for weeks, the allegations against Big Orange’s associate head basketball coach, Bernie Fine, surfaced just Sunday night.

Both universities have done a poor job handling media relations – and both have used possibly the worst public relations move in the books: Accusing the accusers, without a shred of supporting evidence.

When the charges against Fine initially were brought to light, Syracuse Head Coach Jim Boeheim was anything but sympathetic to the three alleged victims who came forward. He called them “liars” in the media and accused them of just being out for the money. Similarly, now-former Penn State University President Graham Spanier implied in his media release that the victims in Sandusky’s case were lying: “I am confident the record will show that these charges are groundless,” he wrote.

Besides being boldly insensitive, it was a big mistake.

In both situations, the price is high for covering-up information and completely disregarding victims’ legitimate allegations. Yet one school is learning from the other’s blunders. While Penn State foot-dragged and cancelled press conferences, Syracuse has been proactive in its crisis communications plan. For that, it should be commended.  In an effort not to repeat the serious lapses of Penn State — and after seeing Spainer lose his job — Syracuse Chancellor Nancy Cantor has taken the right steps to uncover the cover-up.

In a release Sunday night, the school announced upfront and outright, “At the direction of Chancellor Cantor, Bernie Fine’s employment with Syracuse University has been terminated, effective immediately.” No games. No deflections of blame. No cover-ups. And Cantor wants you to know this is under her order.

As a Sports Illustrated column so eloquently explains, “Syracuse is learning a lesson from Penn State, a lesson that every university and major institution needs to learn: When an accusation like this hits you, don’t hit back.  And the best way to protect yourself is not to look like you’re protecting yourself at all.”

And that’s no lie.

With 46 seasons as the head coach of a prestigious football program, more victories than any other major college coach and two national championships, it’s a shame that Penn State’s Joe Paterno might be ending his legacy with such a disgraceful final chapter.

Jerry Sandusky, a former defensive coordinator for the Nittany Lions, was arrested on 40 charges, including sexually abusing eight boys across a 15-year period. Following his arrest, Paterno and university President Graham Spanier have come under fire for failing to report what they knew of the allegations.

This is a serious issue and the university needs to implement a proper crisis communications plan in order to salvage the reputation of the school and its officials. So, what has Penn State done?

Release a statement from Paterno and elect the PR approach of evading all questions. Paterno stated that he was not neglectful and at the time he referred the matter to university administrators. He hoped to continue with the weekly press conference scheduled for yesterday afternoon requesting that media questions only pertained to this weekend’s game against Nebraska and stating, “In the meantime I would ask all Penn Staters to continue to trust in what that name represents… and not let these events shake their beliefs nor who they are.”

Nice try. In the wake of a major scandal involving a beloved football program, do we really think limiting the media’s question is the best way to go? No, Penn State canceled the press conference less than an hour before its scheduled time. Over 100 media members from local and national media were handed a brief statement and turned away. Paterno also canceled his appearance on the weekly Big Ten coaches conference call.

Penn State needs a better crisis plan and face the music, or in this case, the media. Avoiding the media is only raising more questions. Dodging questions and canceling events gives off the feeling that there is something to hide.

Had the press conference gone on as scheduled, Paterno and Penn State would’ve been able to tell the story from their side. Instead the media got their information elsewhere. Anyone familiar with media relations can tell you: the media will not take kindly to being kept in the dark.

On Tuesday night, Paterno took it upon himself and addressed the media and students outside his home hoping to save his reputation in the eyes of the students. However, this morning Paterno confirmed that he will retire at the end of the season, ending 62 years on the Penn State coaching staff – and is potentially facing criminal charges for perjury, obstruction of justice and violating the state’s Child Protective Services Law (According to SportsIllustrated.com).

“With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had done more.”  – Paterno’s closing statement.

Only 72 days after her televised  $10 million dollar fantasy wedding, Kim Kardashian has filed for divorce.

Keeping Up With The Kardashians producer Ryan Seacrest tweeted the news Monday morning, and E! News issued a confirming statement some hours later.

But don’t worry, Kim K will be more than a-okay.

Forbe’s Magazine column, “Kim Kardashian’s Divorce Could Be Good for Business” makes it clear that the divorce won’t just leave the Kardashian brand untarnished, it will even enhance it. With her fame rooted in reality drama (after all she got her start with a sex tape!), you better believe that every media source is doing their best to keep up with this Kardashian.

People tune in for the drama, and Kim will undoubtedly make bank crying all over the sets of E! News, Ellen, and People Magazine.  This media traffic will ultimately drive more viewers back to the show, which will, again, drive more dough back into Kim’s back pocket. Pun intended.

So don’t feel bad for Kim, who ends her marriage with no kids, no mutual assets, and a prenuptial agreement. Forbes estimates that she made $12 million dollars just last year, while her ex-hubby Kris Humphries has made a total of $16 million over his seven-year basketball career.

Kim has no reason to instate a crisis communications plan.  All she needs to worry about is who keeps the $2 million dollar ring and the teacup dog.

Much already has been written about Steve Jobs – his marketing genius, his control of public relations, his ability to skillfully meld the products he created with a pent-up consumer demand for those products (or so we thought once his products were released).

That was the brilliance of Jobs. To paraphrase something he once said, “It isn’t up to consumers to know what they want. It’s up to us to tell them.”

Steven Jobs was one of those transformative inventors who comes along once every few generations. Perhaps it is a testament to how much he touched so many that – as President Barack Obama commented – so many learned of Jobs’ passing on a device he had invented.

He was also a public relations and marketing mastermind. His retail success came from creating powerful products backed by the buzz that made people feel they must have those devices. Apple’s iMac, iPod, iPad and iPhone wowed audiences when revealed in grand on-stage debuts – with Jobs as the emcee. Journalists were awed, and their articles reflected their amazement.

And we consumers bit – hard.

Apple didn’t need “traditional” consumer electronics marketing. The company consistently avoids major announcement hubs like the Consumer Electronics Show, notes PRdaily. He launched the hype – and sustained it.

Most (dare we say All-But-Apple) cannot afford to sidestep the major events. We bend over backwards to please our patrons, and play the retail merchandising game the way the industry has created it. Yet Jobs’ prowess in product development showed us that the brand dictates the trend – and not vice versa.

By developing one-of-a-kind products with unique messages to match, marrying art and technology in a way we’ve never seen before, Jobs dominated the technology industry. As the article explains, many described Apple products as “funky” and “snazzy,” showing their appreciation for the visual appearance of the tech.

Steve Jobs was quoted once as having said, “The customer is not right, I am.” Masterfully brilliant, unabashed in his view of the world, in every essence of the word, Steve Jobs – in his jeans and black, mock-turtleneck – didn’t just sell us things. He sold us dreams.

And if you were listening, he sold us a new roadmap to successful marketing.

At the Primetime Emmy Awards Sunday night, Charlie Sheen shelved his tiger blood and goddesses, and revealed a seemingly much less violent torpedo of truth.

Sheen seems to have taken a sabbatical from his previous antics, which lead to his firing from the hit comedy series, “Two and a Half Men.” With the season premiere of “Men” and his Comedy Central roast both airing on the Monday night after the Emmys, Sheen picked the perfect moment to debut his new, non-warlock self.

He also offered a lesson in why celebrities and other high-profile individuals – CEOs, executives and athletes – must protect their public personas, and apologize if they’ve transgressed.

Before being fired, Sheen was the highest paid actor on television at the time. Then, the meltdown. He held surreal interviews and television appearances. He spewed rhetorical nonsense that left viewers and media wondering about his mental state. He quickly became the hottest trending topic on Twitter for his outlandish posts and wild behavior.

Though he claimed to be “bi-winning,” this seemed like a huge lose-lose for Sheen, the show, and CBS.

So when Sheen took center stage at the Emmys to present the award for Lead Actor in a Comedy Series – his old category – no one knew exactly what to expect. He was apologetic and humble. He wished his old series well. He said (with apparent sincerity), “I know you will continue to make great television.”

So the question is: Who was the Sheen we had just seen? Was it an act, or has he truly changed? More importantly, how will he be remembered? Will we look back on Charlie Sheen and think of the eight years he spent dominating primetime? Or will we recall only “Violent Torpedoes of Truth,” “Rock Star from Mars” or any of the other 22 phrases he sought to trademark? Only time will tell.

On a more broad scope, celebrities and others in the limelight – community leaders, presidents of corporations, executive directors of a charity – must watch how they act in public. Don’t act in ways or say things that will tarnish the personal or brand image. Behave with decorum. Beware who’s watching. If caught, apologize – quickly.

Though Sheen dug himself into a PR nightmare this past year, he’s managing to slowly dig himself out. He’s even endorsing the “Two And A Half Men” premiere with his replacement Ashton Kutcher, tweeting, “Odd…But cool..! So far a lot of laughs!”

Though his jury is still out, hopefully Charlie Sheen can emerge #winning.