The onslaught of the Dove Campaign’s companies, though perhaps justified, is just one of many issues regarding public relation’s responsibility to respond to attacks on corporations and to handle them correctly.
Damage control can play a vital role in these kinds of cases, although as mentioned in class, the ability to see criticism coming from a mile away can be advantageous. The latest issues in current affairs include the newly over-publicized lawsuits that the oil company, Chevron is faced with in the media today. The main issue revolves around the unreleased film documentary called Crude, and how it brings to light the degradation of land after oil companies have drilled wells and left... after they have given large incentives to the countries which they have business dealings with.
Crude, which is to be released this fall, calls out these oil companies in ways that will reach the sympathies of millions. 60 Minutes portrayed this film in the news as extremely fair and unbiased when in reality, the documentary distorts the public relations of these companies by showing oil covered animals and cancer outbreaks. Most PR professionals are trying to handle the perception of greedy lawsuits that spring up from the ground, the largest of which are 27 billion dollars!
If people want to push for more responsibility from companies who go global, that seems fair and logical. It can only be expected that companies who deal with oil in foreign countries should painstakingly cleanse the land they have drilled. But there should be less one-sided attacks from those who are in fact benefiting from these companies.
The trailer for Crude makes the evidence of contamination indisputable. As with anything that tries to show malice in the world, there really are two sides to every story. Public relations businesses play a bigger part in these concerns than most realize.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTnm01lWsTg
http://chevrontoxico.com/news-and-multimedia/2009/0503-60-minutes-amazon-crude.html
