The Publicity Hound’s Blog  

Dole, the world’s largest producer and marketer of fresh vegetables, is hiding behind its attorneys, while a scathing report on tonight’s “Dateline” most likely will send sales of its bagged lettuce heading south.

Attorneys apparently told the company not to allow executives to be interviewed for the story on how at least 26 people in three states have gotten sick after eating Dole bagged lettuce tainted with E.coli.

After numerous interviews with victims, health officials and produce industry spokesmen, I kept waiting for somebody from Dole to come on camera.

Certainly a company honcho would apologize, show a little sympathy for the sick consumers, and talk about how Dole is cooperating to solve the problem. If they’re smart, they’ll even set up a hotline for consumer questions and tell viewers what number to call. 

Instead, in a letter to “Dateline,” Dole says it is “unable to comment” because of the pending lawsuits, and adds “food safety always has and will be our top priority.” The company says it is working “closely with government…to provide the freshest, cleanest fruits and vegetables possible.”

That’s when I walked over to the fridge, removed the half-eaten bag of lettuce from the vegetable bin, and tossed it into the trash.

These clueless companies just don’t get it. When something like this happens, and lawsuits result, the very worst thing executives can do is run for cover. They make it sound like there’s a law prohibiting them from commenting if somebody files a lawsuit against them.

Well, there isn’t.

Clarence Jones, a former TV investigative reporter and crisis counseler, says too many companies like Dole make this mistake. When I interviewed him last year during a teleseminar called “In a Media Crisis, Your Lawyer Will be Wrong,” Jones said that by the time lawsuits wind their way through the legal system, a company’s reputation could be tarnished and its sales destroyed.

Jones says ninety-nine percent of the attorneys he deals with in situations like this one tell their clients not to talk. The other 1 percent understand, like Johnson & Johnson did in the 1980s during the Tylenol murders, that if you are honest and open with consumers and with the media, you can successfully defend any lawsuits and win back the public’s trust.

Johnson & Johnson followed its simple credo that guided the company through the Tylenol murders. Withinin a year, its sales surpassed where they had been when the crisis hit, all because of the company cooperated fully with investigators and the media.

The company even invited reporters into strategy sessions in which executives tried to figure out how to handle the crisis.

If it can work for aspirin, why can’t it work for lettuce? 

Posted In: Crisis Communications, How to Interview, PR Consultants/Publicists, TV Publicity
posted On: 4/30/2006: 10:17 pm: By Joan
Comments: 2 Comments

One of the “Seven Sisters” women’s magazines, circulation 3.8 million, has asked freelancer Leah Ingram to write a roundup of eight fun European cities to travel to with your kids (toddlers to teens).

This is based on a trip she’s planned for her family to visit Edinburgh, Paris and London the last week of July. Now the magazine would like her to flesh out that experience to five additional cities.

She needs to hear about kid-friendly things to do in other well-known European cities. Except for the three cities mentioned above, she’s open to any suggestions. She wants to hear about experiences that will benefit the kids and the whole family–socially, physically, educationally, spiritually, etc.

She is not interested in suggestions for which the only purpose is to load you down with souvenirs (read: no EuroDisney). In addition, Leah would appreciate any help with media rates and leads for travel to and within her planned itinerary to Scotland, England and France.

This story is likely to run in the late fall, for people who want to travel during the winter, so please pitch only information that will be relevant at the publiction date. If you would like to overnight press kits, you can send them to: Leah Ingram, 106 Summer Lea Ct., New Hope, PA 18938. Or email her at leah.ingram@comcast.net but don’t send attachments.

Deadline is as soon as possible.

Posted In: Magazine Publicity, Publicity for Niche Markets
posted On: : 9:30 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

When the gossip mags are tracking down a rumor about a celebrity, how do they know when they’ve struck gold?

When they call the celebrity’s publicist, and the publicist says “no comment.”

O’Dwyer’s Public Relations News, which covered a panel of celebrity gossip columnists at Dillon’s Lounge in New York recently, quotes Jo Piazza, a columnist for the Daily News. She said she always tries to get the other side of story, and will call a celebrity’s publicist and ask to confirm or deny a rumor. It protects the writers legally and makes the difference between whether the story has legs, or dies. 

“People think we just play off gossip hunches … we usually have to know who the source is. We need to gauge how the publicist responds to it. If they say ‘no comment’, then it’s definitely true.”

Just one more reason to never say “no comment.”

Columnists from the Village Voice, Star Magazine and New York Magazine’s “The Intelligencer” had to say about which celebs get media coverage and why. And know the alternatives to saying “no comment.”

Posted In: Crisis Communications, How to Interview, Magazine Publicity, PR Consultants/Publicists
posted On: : 7:52 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

The “Today” show will be honoring outstanding grandmothers this May and wants you to nominate your favorite grandma.

It also wants to hear from Publicity Hounds who live in or near Chicago, Seattle or West Palm Beach and love food. This is for an upcoming series with Giada De Laurentiis, author of “Everyday Italian” and the soon-to-be-released “Giada’s Family Dinners.”

“Today” is also looking for the cheapest date in America. Are you the cheapest date or do you know someone who is? If so, find out how to participate in an upcoming segment.

Email your responses to these queries this page at their website. r th Scroll about halfway down the page to the box on the right side that says “Send us your questions and stories” and click on the query that interests you. 

Posted In: TV Publicity
posted On: 4/28/2006: 10:22 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

How does a terminally ill breast cancer patient prepare her family for life without her?

The Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine: Empowering Mind-Body-Spirit is seeking inspirational messages on this subject from families that had to go through this experience. The magazine focuses on ways to empower mind, body and spirit in each issue, as well as the difficult challenges that come from being diagnosed with cancer.

Publisher Beverly Vote says she would like five articles on this topic. The full-color magazine is free to breast cancer patients and survivors and is published quarterly. Word count is under 800 words.  Deadline is July 1 and you can email the articles to her at BeverlyVote@aol.com

The magazine is continuing to take names and addresses of breast cancer patients and survivors that wish to receive this free publication through July 1.

Posted In: Magazine Publicity, Writing Articles
posted On: : 8:05 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment