Little white lies= huge liability?

Journalism, as we have established, is a tricky business. The biggest obstacle facing journalists' reputations is their credibility. Everyday, newspapers receive feedback from their readers with praises, complaints, and questions. Most of these responses are generally harmless and not given the utmost attention possible. Once in a while, however, a journalist will receive a reader's letter that is worth their time. This usually occurs when a reader informs the journalist of a suspicious company or individual, where something may not be quite "right". This type of discovery is potentially very dangerous for the public relations of the company or individual in question. The worst offense is usually in the case of the uncovering of a lie by the company or individual. A little white lie can quickly snowball into the worst kind of publicity, and can cost a company its reputation, and its business. 

VP of Research for InsiderScore Ben Silverman tells his experience of dealing with lies in the realm of PR,

Several years back, a reader tipped me off onto a story: 'Please look at the news links I’ve provided and tell me if Bill Gates uses a BlackBerry.' I thought the reader’s question was odd. Who cares if Bill Gates uses a BlackBerry? Then I took the time to check out the news stories that the reader had submitted. For several years RIM had been using Bill Gates as an example of a high-profile person who used their product. Former Vice President Al Gore was also mentioned as a BlackBerry user in many stories, usually wrapped around an incident involving the 2000 Presidential election. Bill Gates’ use of a BlackBerry was never quantified though, and as the reader pointed out to me, he didn't appear to use one."

Silverman questioned how this myth had begun. He investigated RIM’s website, and saw that  the company had posted a series of press clippings. He found an undated Wall Street Journal story which stated the following:

“Al Gore has one. So does Bill Gates. It’s standard issue for attorneys at Cravath Swaine & Moore, a prestigious corporate law firm, and widely used by investment bankers at Merrill Lynch & Co., the nation’s biggest brokerage firm. It’s the BlackBerry. And since its introduction nearly three years ago, the handheld corporate email device has amassed many high-profile devotees and become an indispensable tool for the mobile professional.”

He confirmed that the Wall Street Journal had reported that Bill Gates used a BlackBerry. However, there was no source given for the information, so he couldn't assume that either Gates or RIM had told the writer that Gates was a BlackBerry user.

In December 2001, Forbes Magazine showcased the BlackBerry in its exclusive gifts section, claiming that Bill Gates was “said” to be a “devoted” user. Several weeks earlier, the Sunday Telegraph listed Gates as a “famous” BlackBerry user. The articles claimed that at some time, Gates had proclaimed himself as a Blackberry user and fan, yet none of the articles provided sources for this claim.

Then on August 20, 2002, TheRecord.com published a list of high-profile BlackBerry users in a story about RIM. Gates was on the list, which was offered to the publication by the company.

“The company doesn’t like to be seen promoting itself on the backs of its high-profile clients. But it says the following people and organizations have been reported in the media as using the BlackBerry,” TheRecord.com reported.

Here was where Silverman saw something wrong. RIM provided the publication with a list of people who “have been reported in the media as using a BlackBerry.” However, the line about the company not wanting to promote itself by talking up high-profile users was interesting, as well as contradictory. It was almost as if they were saying, “We don’t like to talk about it, but here’s a list of celebrities who reportedly use our device.”

Because of these publications, it was believed that Bill Gates used a BlackBerry and liked it. There was nothing in the media proving otherwise. In fact, RIM pushed the idea that Gates was a “devoted” BlackBerry user. A week later, however, the lie was revealed. 

“Mr. Gates, who says he has never used a BlackBerry, admits he has talked to users who trumpet the handheld computer’s virtues,” wrote the Financial Post.

“There is a group of people who love the thing, but that market has been much smaller than most analysts expected. I wonder why this has done so well in some areas. But once you get by journalists and technology people, it hasn’t done that well. However, that area is a hot area and we’ll invest in it, even if it doesn’t turn out that way next year. We believe in the category,” Gates told the newspaper.

Oops!  Bill Gates was officially off the list of high-profile BlackBerry users. The company who, for several years, had touted its product and seemingly distributed a list of high-profile customers to the media, was uncovered as having lied or fibbed about its high-profile customers. While writers at the time loved it, and regurgitated this list everywhere possible, they now found themselves involved in quite a scandal.  

It can be speculated that RIM's PR department probably didn't even know whether or not Gate's used a BlackBerry, but thought the idea was catchy and perhaps plausible,a nd decided to run with it. However, they perhaps "forgot" that this information would become public and Gate's himself would see it. Perhaps they anticipated this uncovering of their fib and welcomed the attention, using the mentality of "all press is good press". Had the fib not been uncovered, however, all the involved parties would not have been discredited as they were.

This is where the trouble lies (no pun intended) in the uncovering of fibs in PR. When a reader points out a discrepancy, the legitimacy and accuracy of information released by a company's PR department is heavily questioned and examined. Suddenly, the PR department's work is discredited, and their agendas questioned. Good publicity turns bad in automatically, whether or not the claims made are even true. Even a small lie, as we can see in  the example above, can ruin the reputation of a company in an instant. it may be glamorous and exciting to receive the attention a little lie brings, but ultimately, it is a lie, and a certain amount of trust between the company and the public, as well as between journalists and PR specialists, has been broken. 

All in all, even the little white lies can hurt. So don't tell them.

References:

Silverman, B. (2009, January 14). Little White Lies Can Lead to Big Problems in Public Relations. Press Release Distribution | Press Release Writing Services . Retrieved May 3, 2011, from http://www.ereleases.com/prfuel/little-white-lies-can-lead-to-big-problems-in-public-relations/

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