Over the last year, we've discovered just how important it is to be able to control your messages in the public forum. Between elections, corporate scandal, and local issues it is imperative that any organization be ready to handle difficult situations as well as get the good news out. Because of course, we all know that the media is more interested in the "bad" stories.
The "bad" stories seem to be more prevalent lately however, it could simply be that we are being broadcast at from many more different angles. I am of the generation who grew up without computers and didn't have cable television until high school. Now, I am being sent "news" through the traditional newspaper (which, yes, I still like to read in paper format), through online content providers (AOL, CNN), radio (NPR), and even verbally when I overhear people talking in public places. I am also encountering new ideas and opinions from my students and all my contacts on social networks (FaceBook and LinkedIn).
On one hand, I feel it's important, as a consumer and citizen, to be knowledgeable of what is going on. On the other, as a communications professional, I am thinking more and more about the message overload and how companies can control what gets out for discussion without becoming an ostrich who buries their head in the sand hoping no one will notice them. Where is that line of being fair to people and self-preservation? Why are we all left with a sour taste in our mouth and only seeing the dark side of everything? Are we all becoming too cynical to accept "good" news?
Small businesses have an easier time, I believe, simply because their "bad" news isn't as big of a story as "bad" news from a major corporation is. I see this as an advantage to small businesses. Take advantage of your lack of "bad" news press to emphasize the importance of your "good" news. Give your community something to feel good about.
Signing off for now...
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