Weiner, Perceived Golden Boy Who Missed a Golden Rule
Anyone with access to broadcast, print or online media knows the Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) story of “my Twitter account was hacked,” following lewd photos of him tweeted to a 21-year-old woman, that instantly went public. When the story broke two weeks ago, Weiner’s first line of defense was one of arrogance (how dare the media pester me with such questions) and victimization (“someone had fun with my last name, played a prank on me”). For nearly 10 days, Weiner lied to media, his constituents and the American public suggesting someone ‘doctored’ photos to implicate him in this disturbing online sexting behavior.
The media, insatiable and unsatisfied with what smelled like lies, continued digging into and unraveling Weiner’s story. The lie slapped him in the face on June 6, 2011, forcing him to call a late afternoon national press conference where he shamefully admitted he lied and sent the photo—no one hacked his Twitter account. This spotlight grew larger than necessary because he did not honor a public relations biblical rule: Tell the truth.
As public relations professionals, we know the dangers of letting someone else control our story. Best practices in crisis management situations is to: 1) Get out in front of your story as quickly and as honestly as possible. 2) Full disclosure. The quicker you put suspicions to rest, the more likely you can move on and the media will look for someone else to grill—not you. Even as children, our parents and teachers encourage us to tell the truth, no matter how ugly. One or two times of going against their advice, we soon realize how a story snowballs out of control, becoming worse than the actual truth. Most people are more forgiving if honesty and sincere remorse are shown first rather than an arrogant attempt to sell us a story you think we’re foolish enough to buy.
The media, insatiable and unsatisfied with what smelled like lies, continued digging into and unraveling Weiner’s story. The lie slapped him in the face on June 6, 2011, forcing him to call a late afternoon national press conference where he shamefully admitted he lied and sent the photo—no one hacked his Twitter account. This spotlight grew larger than necessary because he did not honor a public relations biblical rule: Tell the truth.
As public relations professionals, we know the dangers of letting someone else control our story. Best practices in crisis management situations is to: 1) Get out in front of your story as quickly and as honestly as possible. 2) Full disclosure. The quicker you put suspicions to rest, the more likely you can move on and the media will look for someone else to grill—not you. Even as children, our parents and teachers encourage us to tell the truth, no matter how ugly. One or two times of going against their advice, we soon realize how a story snowballs out of control, becoming worse than the actual truth. Most people are more forgiving if honesty and sincere remorse are shown first rather than an arrogant attempt to sell us a story you think we’re foolish enough to buy.
Rep. Weiner has now negatively impacted his marriage and political career. Members of Congress are seeking his resignation. His situation is no different than previous public figures who thought they could overcome the truth with a lie. From former President Bill Clinton, to former New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer, Tiger Woods, John Edwards and others and more to come, one’s intelligence and perceived ability to outwit the public is not the answer. Owning your faults and displaying sincere regret will give you peace of mind and the media less to talk about.
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