Damage Control focuses on several different case studies and highlights what the companies did well or poorly in terms of crisis communication. What is especially interesting is that this book immediately addresses the famous Tylenol case and mentions that even though most crisis communications classes highlight this case, it proves not to be the end all and be all for crisis communication strategies. In the first pages of this book, Dezenhall and Weber state,
“There is much to learn from J&J’s crisis management, but blindly worshipping at this alter may be little more than an exercise in self-delusion for companies that find themselves in the crosshairs of an anxious public, a hostile media, and regulators under extraordinary pressure to make an example of bad industrial actors.”
Although they admit the successes of this crisis management, the authors set up their book to address a more diverse set of crises and display what companies did in situations that can be translated to other cases as well.
The authors focus on examples like celebrity endorsements and how they can sometimes be controversial, like when Alec Baldwin and his wife wore AIDS ribbons in support of research but then also made statements in favor of not medically testing on animals, a hypocritical statement in terms of supporting a cause. They mention cases like the Coca-Cola crisis in Europe where the product was banned in Belgium for a week and display strategies that Coke used to rekindle its relationship with the country. The authors even highlight the scandal down the road by mentioning the Duke Lacrosse case and their use of YouTube to counterattack their crisis situation. Dezenhall and Weber also released a newer edition of their book where they analyzed the most recent WikiLeaks scandal and offer some key points on what to do if a similar situation occurs.
I would definitely recommend this book as supplemental reading for crisis communication courses. The information is up-to-date and relevant. Dezenhall and Weber, the authors of this book, have experienced some of these situations first-hand and have some very insightful tips and anecdotes to get their point across. It is a fast read and contains a lot of helpful information that is broad enough to be applied to a variety of crisis communication situations. This book is a great resource and can be navigated easily as the chapters are divided by topics from blame and resentment to the crisis in your future.
Ashton Wagner
University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill
“There is much to learn from J&J’s crisis management, but blindly worshipping at this alter may be little more than an exercise in self-delusion for companies that find themselves in the crosshairs of an anxious public, a hostile media, and regulators under extraordinary pressure to make an example of bad industrial actors.”
Although they admit the successes of this crisis management, the authors set up their book to address a more diverse set of crises and display what companies did in situations that can be translated to other cases as well.
The authors focus on examples like celebrity endorsements and how they can sometimes be controversial, like when Alec Baldwin and his wife wore AIDS ribbons in support of research but then also made statements in favor of not medically testing on animals, a hypocritical statement in terms of supporting a cause. They mention cases like the Coca-Cola crisis in Europe where the product was banned in Belgium for a week and display strategies that Coke used to rekindle its relationship with the country. The authors even highlight the scandal down the road by mentioning the Duke Lacrosse case and their use of YouTube to counterattack their crisis situation. Dezenhall and Weber also released a newer edition of their book where they analyzed the most recent WikiLeaks scandal and offer some key points on what to do if a similar situation occurs.
I would definitely recommend this book as supplemental reading for crisis communication courses. The information is up-to-date and relevant. Dezenhall and Weber, the authors of this book, have experienced some of these situations first-hand and have some very insightful tips and anecdotes to get their point across. It is a fast read and contains a lot of helpful information that is broad enough to be applied to a variety of crisis communication situations. This book is a great resource and can be navigated easily as the chapters are divided by topics from blame and resentment to the crisis in your future.
Ashton Wagner
University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill