chicago510;963515 wrote:We now know that Ohio State only has the 2nd worst PR and crisis management team in the Big 10. Holy schnikes.
PSU made the same mistake OSU did: they did not immediately hire a crisis communications consultant to guide them through the mess. No business or university is equipped to handle something like this; there is specific training you need to handle situations that are as sensitive as what PSU was facing.
Their first mistake was going forward with the weekly presser. They should have just cancelled it and said it was due to the legal issues. Instead, the aggravated everything by issuing an edict to the press that basically challenged them, saying we aren't going to answer any questions.
You don't do that with media; it's like putting steak in front of a rabid pit bull.
Now the Board has one option left to get ahead of this: immediately start cleaning house. Start with the president and then fire Paterno and McQueary for starters. Put someone in as interim coach who hopefully wasn't around for most of the past 20 years. If nobody like that exists, then pick someone you think will pass muster, but ONLY after talking to them.
If any of the remaining staff had even an inkling of this and didn't come forward, it will eventually come out. Reporters will be talking to all of their friends and associates to see if anyone said anything.
Once you've cleaned house, you then get your legal ducks in a row and at some point, you face the music and hold the press conference. You do a continuous mea culpa on all the issues at hand and pledge that things will be very different from now on.
You put in place safeguards that prevent such coverups in the future. Perhaps board members are mandated to be included in any police reports that relate to the university, so no one individual has the power to white wash events.
Since you've fired Paterno and McQueary, you let them and their attorneys handle any media stuff that may arise; they are no longer your employees or your problem.
