PR from the Beach

We need more than Kiwi ingenuity to be ready for kick off

I know there are huge life-and-death concerns in the world right now but, at a local level, I find myself worrying more and more as to whether or not we will be ready for kick-off come the Rugby World Cup on September 9 this year.

I love New Zealand, I love rugby, I love Auckland and Invercargill and all the places in between. I also know it is tantamount to treason to profer criticism of either New Zealand's ability to do something or rugby. But looking around, I am not confident that we will be ready to the standard the rest of the world expects come the big day. 

Today's New Zealand Herald  looks again at the financial cost of hosting the event here. Me, I'm worried about the cost to our reputation.  There's the big tent thingy going up on the waterfront, the stadiums that are not equipped to deal with the demands of the world's sports and other media, there's the inoperative countdown clock  just opposite Britomart. Then there's the whole business of accommodation, transport links to venues, overpricing, no eftpos at stadiums and (whispers) the normal potential for the weather to be atrocious in September and October.

Whether we like it or not, the world has high expectations of international events of this kind and looking around the country four months out, I wonder if we will meet those expectations or fall dreadfully short. We rely on people coming here. Tourism is, we are told, one of our economic cornerstones. Yet this showcase event looks scarily unfinished at a time when we should be adding polish to the preparations, not still struggling with the infrastructure.  The long term risk to our reputation is far greater than the initial financial deficits being reported. If those coming - or not - for the Rugby World Cup - are not happy with the provisions and preparations for their arrival our tourism industry will be affected for years to come. 

It is naive to think that it is just a sporting tournament even though that viewpoint is the one most heard. If you have any doubts about that, cast your mind back to the debacle in India last year during the Commonwealth Games. September's event is a world showcase for the entire country so we need to see some leadership - and some real action - in order to be ready for those we have invited to come. 

If I had invited visitors from across the world to come to see me in September, the rooms would be ready, beds counted, meals planned, transport sorted and entertainment organised.  All that would be left to do four months out would be a tidy up in the garden just before they got here.

Looking at the event from the inside out, it all looks very piecemeal, disjointed and uncoordinated. From an event management point of view, this is not a good look, nor good operational practice. I am willing someone, somewhere to create a rounded picture for fans and visitors alike of what they can expect - something that doesn't exist at the moment.  

Looking at today's picture, I fear it will take a heck of a lot more than Kiwi ingenuity between now and September to give the rest of the world the welcome it expects - and deserves. Because there is an awful lot more to do than just tidy up the garden.

#2010 - A Year in Hashtags

Back at work and wading through remaining relics of last year, I realised 2010 was the year in which hashtags finally made it as the early 21st century headline. As I've been explaining them to people for years, it was great to see this breakthrough point. Whatever was going on, the hashtag became - finally - the defining reference point for the collective consciousness if you really wanted to find out what was going on, who was affected and what needed to be done.

Just days away from the first anniversary of the Haitian earthquake, below are the hashtags that will, for me anyway, signal the step-changes and life-changing events of 2010.

• #Haiti - in January, a 7.0M earthquake flattens poverty stricken Haiti. One year on, the plight of the people living there continues to be dire and help is still needed for the thousands suffering appalling conditions.
• #Chile - in February, Chile is hit by a whopping 8.8M earthquake lasting three minutes. Recovery is faster than for Haiti, but 541 lives are lost, tsunami warnings issued and the rebuild continues.
• #Iceland - the volcanic eruption that paralysed Europe and stalled air travel around the world. The volcano's name - Eyjafjallajökull - was much too long for a hashtag, so either #iceland or #volcano became the mustering point as people wondered if, when and how they were going to get home.
• #Deepwater - when the Deepwater Horizon rig blew out on April 20, the hashtag activity was limited to an active - and angry - conversation among those concerned about what was going to happen next. Amazingly, the companies most closely involved at this point, the owners and contractors respectively - Transocean and Halliburton - deftly slipped into invisibility as 'Big Brother' BP stepped in to try to stem the leak. Very swiftly, hashtags changed with #bpoil, #bpspill, #bpceo, #oilspill among the most used.
• #greece and #thailand both crashed in to the trends maps at the end of April thanks to civil unrest in both countries.
• #allwhites and the Soccer World Cup in South Africa provided welcome respite from the disasters and deaths that had dominated the first half of 2010. Some of my favourite Twitter conversations took place in the middle of the night in June as collectively, Kiwi #allwhites fans settled down to watch the matches together and quip about them online. A personal favourite of mine in June was #wprf as the World Public Relations Forum was held in Stockholm, with much tweeting done by all.
• #wikileaks sprung into action for the first time in July, with the first documents hitting the public consciousness. It was a hashtag we were going to see a lot more of as the year progressed.
• #eqnz - September saw the most devastating natural disaster New Zealand has seen in many years. Civil Defence NZ didn't get the hang of hashtags at all, with ridiculously long hashtags being used by the organisation - even when the community had settled on #eqnz. As the aftershocks continue, the hashtag remains a rallying point for Canterbury - and Civil Defence still hasn't got the hang of them!
• #Chile was back in October as the rescue of the trapped underground miners got underway. Here in NZ, conversation was just as hot and controversial around #paulhenry, after the broadcaster resigned from TVNZ.
• #pikeriver - tragically, in November, our own #pikeriver miners were not to have the same triumphant outcome as those in Chile. Like #eqnz, #pikeriver remains a much-used, much referenced hashtag for those still affected by these two major events, even after the mainstream coverage and commentary has moved on.
• #socialmedia was a continuing favourite in December, but #willandkate got a look in along with #secretsantas and, of course, #christmas.

 

Which brings us to #2011. If #2010 was the year of the hashtag, then by my reckoning, #2011 will be the year of the live tweet chat - so watch out for one you might be interested in and take the opportunity whenever you can to join in. And, as a final note, as we stand at the gate of the year, my hope for you is that all your hashtags be happy ones.

 

 

So has the first Cyber War begun?

Amazon has now had a blip, Mastercard and others have experience distributed-denial-of-service attacks and Saturday's UK Guardian announces that the hackers claim the first global cyber war has begun.

Back in 2006, when I first stumbled on the film 'V for Vendetta' you would have been hard pressed to find anyone who would go along with the conspiracy theories that fuelled the plot. After all, they would say, nothing like that could possibly happen in this day and age - we're much too smart. And besides, ordinary folk just don't get off the benches and do that sort of thing. Interesting then that the Anonymous group, alleged to be behind the attacks, has adopted the Guy Fawkes mask from the film as their collective avatar as they ostensibly stand up against the demise of the WikiLeaks site and arrest of Assange. But are they the 'ordinary folk' behind the mask that they purport to be? Elsewhere the hackers have been described as ordinary people rising up to 'right the wrongs' they perceive to have occurred. There are definitely some serious wrongs going on in this sorry saga, but I do wonder if these 'ordinary hackers' are sincere in their stand for 'the people's rights' , whether they have stopped to consider the consequences of their actions or whether they are merely keen to exercise a little anarchistic muscle.

It might seem inconsequential for most of us - something happening beyond our control out there in cyberspace - where, let's face it, many mostly go to check Facebook, chat on Twitter or email out some Christmas greetings.  Truth is, even if claims of the first global cyber war have been exaggerated, the implications of the online actions of all those involved - from WikiLeaks, to Governments, hackers to downloaders - are considerable.

I've written about this before (back in 2007) and again more recently following the China hacks and we all need to be concerned, aware of what can and can't be done in such circumstances and also - most importantly - that the web is not the bastion of free speech that many of us would like to believe it to be.  Frustratingly, not many people seem to care and, worryingly, there is very little collective business, individual or organisational will to address the problems this sort of denial of service can cause or to address the social and economic impact it will have on the real ordinary people who will find they can't get their money, or buy food or operate within a system increasingly dependent on online interactions. Somehow I can't see the hackers themselves coughing up the cash refused to the hungry, cold pensioner because 'the computer says no'.

I am sure I am not alone in thinking that the players who withdrew services from the WikiLeaks site did so to maintain their political licence to operate, rather than to ensure everyone toed the line when it came to site terms and conditions. Shame should rest on the political masters who may have engineered such reactions.  I am also convinced that at least some of the hackers currently dealing out 'payback' are doing it because the WikiLeaks affair provides a useful sandbox environment that allows them to see just how far they can get. Now, as always, two wrongs don't make a right.

As with all wars, the innocent are the ones caught in the middle and even a cyber war will see casualties mounting. Sadly, I suspect the first great loss will be the opportunity the web provides for Freedom of Speech. Another bleakly Orwellian view I can glimpse is that Freedom of Thought would be the next human right to bite the dust as first the governments, then the web giants, then the hackers seek to control - from behind their respective and particular masks - what we say and do online and off, as well as what we are allowed to hear and see.

 

The Tweet Imperative: Practitioner Beware

Little story today about problems at a tween star's autograph signing, but one with major implications for communicators who regularly use Twitter to advise, inform and attract people to events.

There are different versions of the story around - one says the executive was arrested for not tweeting when told, while another says it was because he tweeted too much, drawing a large, over-stimulated, hormone-fuelled crowd of screaming teens.

Whatever the actual situation, practitioners and communicators everywhere should take careful note of this one. For example, how does 'being ordered to communicate' sit with free speech? What if, in your professional opinion, tweeting would make the situation worse? And what impact would that have on your organisation's reputation? 

Equally, in a 'non-democratic' environment, what if you are 'ordered' to tweet something that will put others in danger? And for the journalists who live tweet material - what if your story is the catalyst that causes chaos? What liability would mainstream media assume?

This is a small story about an action taken - or at very least suggested - by some US police officers. Its implications however, are enormous, not necessarily at this moment, but certainly as we rush towards the future. Bet there are a few people out there live tweeting events as I write. As the event manager are you at some point, going to be held responsible for what they say or the actions their tweets precipitate?

I know it's a consideration that I'll be building into programmes from here on in. 

Another Tsunami warning and NZ Civil Defence communication still looks scarily inept

As I write, we are on another tsunami advisory following three more Pacific earthquakes, this time around Vanuatu. Whether the island will suffer the same terrible devastation and loss as Samoa and parts of Tonga we don't yet know - we can only hope that all are safe and that no lives are lost.

Here in New Zealand, I have been watching the Civil Defence communications with keen interest - more so than usual following recent events. I am flabbergasted that they are still relying on static web updates to communicate urgent information. Surely all major organisations must be aware that in today's communications environment if they don't fill the information void themselves, then someone else will - and in a crisis situation this in itself will add to misunderstanding, miscommunication and life-threatening mistakes.

Ironically, next week is Disaster Awareness Week, when we are all supposed to knuckle down and make sure we are prepared for the kind of natural disasters we have seen so frequently in recent months. Part of the Civil Defence advance promotion package includes a 'media kit' for participating organisations designed to help them disseminate 'key messages'. All the advice is centred entirely on old-school traditional mainstream media without the slightest acknowledgment that other forms of communication exist. The advice is also expensive as it suggests local media advertising as a major tactic. Will such a tactic add to a local programme given the extensive advertising campaign already running on national television? I don't think so.

If I was to name one single benefit of the online environment, it would be the ability to harness the power of social media tools in crisis communication. Sadly, the Civil Defence department doesn't seem to have grasped this, even though other emergency services around the world have seen, experienced and utilised the power of digital communication. Come on guys - at least tweet your updates. You have my phone number because as a conscientious citizen I registered to be part of the 'early warning system' (which didn't happen by the way) - send me a text to say 'Stay off the beach' or 'Grab your emergency kit, it's incoming' or even a reassuring 'All's well'.  Simple really - and achievable at a fraction of the cost of the advertising currently recommended.

When infrastructure is wiped out as a result of a disaster - natural or otherwise - then we would have to work with whatever is left - sounding a drum, banging the rocks or tapping out Morse code. But for advanced warning - while we are all still switched on, plugged in and open to send and receive facts - using digital engagement to communicate could save thousands of lives. Simply hoping someone might pass by an old-school web site and pick up infrequent updates will leave us all sinking in a sea of inertia.

Only the silence seems to grow in face of global food shortages

It is nearly a year since I first blogged about the severe food shortages in North Korea. Today, conditions are much worse, to the point where the cloistered North is even contemplating asking for help from South Korea - so things must be bad. But North Korea is not alone in this predicament. More than three million people face starvation in Nepal, thanks to crop failures caused by climate change. The Solomon Islands face food shortages, again brought about by climate change, and the list grows by the day - Kenya, Sudan and 'closer to home' as well, with warning bells sounding in the UK over the need to address food production and agricultural issues.

North Korea's problems are seeded by its political system but many other places around the world face food shortages because of disaster, climate extremes and price hikes caused by unsustainable practices. Again, glancing back to this time last year, we were teetering at the edge of the global financial meltdown, yet warnings went unheeded and it seemed that everyone was wise only after the event. 

Signs, indicators and trends point towards food security being a major issue for millions of people in the coming year, yet the majority of mainstream media outlets are as slow to catch on to food security as they were the financial blow-outs. In western economies, price is the main issue, rather than scarcity. There is plenty of food in the shops but as jobs disappear and incomes are cut access to that food is reduced. So what's to be done? The 'agencies' - Oxfam, World Vision, the UN and many others - are all doing their part to raise not just awareness of the problem but also stimulate action to prevent conditions worsening. Sadly, as soon as one famine fire looks like it might be extinguished, another takes its place.

Mainstream media seems obstinate in its refusal to' effectively report on famines, food security issues and food shortages yet it is an issue that is going to touch each and every one of us at some point - probably sooner than we think. 

So what can we do? Talk to people about it. Blog about it. Look around and see how you can help. It might mean you decided to grow veggies in the back yard for yourself or it might mean finding a channel to make your voice heard, so that those with the power and resources to help those dying from hunger do so.

Today, 1.02 billion people are hungry. That is a huge number. A ridiculous number. Almost beyond comprehension. So boil it down - see each individual for the person they are, a person just like you but who needs our help. It is easy to imagine one child. Well, one child dies every five seconds from hunger-related causes. So in the time it has taken for you to read this, five children will have died. I think that is something worth raising our voices over, don't you?

Will Iceland's summer election warm the nation's economy?

After the food shortages of last year, the riots and then the 'pots and pans' or Saucepan Revolution in January, Iceland heads to the polls this weekend. The election is a direct result of citizen protests triggered as the Icelandic economy went into melt-down. 

Tomorrow's election (April 25) - is an election which, according to some, has delayed the payments from the IMF promised during the meltdown period last year. Many Icelandic bloggers have been charting, reporting and commenting on the quiet revolution that has been underway, so much so, that a list of bloggers deemed to be 'enemies of the Progressive Party was recently published by the DV newspapers. One longtime blogger, Alda, was saddened to be left off the list - she felt her place should have been assured by this post which provides insight into some of the background to the crisis through the lens of the film, Dreamland, in turn based on the book Dreamland: A Self-Help Manual for a Frightened Nation by Andri Snær Magnason. I would heartily recommend you read Alda's post (and her blog generally) as the story of Dreamland is one that I believe has been replicated in many places around the world - and that in the months ahead, we will see similar situations arise in many small nations.

There is daily talk of 'the recession' as if it is an amorphous doom, arriving unannounced and bringing with it these unavoidable consequences. Mainstream media makes it easy for us to believe that 'the recession' is as sudden and out of the blue as a previously unspotted asteroid. But this is not the case. The financial troubles that abound - in Iceland and elsewhere - are primarily the fruits of unethical, profit-driven, greedy sharp practice. Judgements made in the interests of the shareholder, not society.  Where companies are making workers redundant, I seriously question the validity of the redundancies blamed on the 'recession', convinced as I am that many are using it as an excuse to cover up previous mismanagement of their organisations (and I would include the public sector in that as well).

I hope that after the election, the people of Iceland can begin a new era with leaders capable of rebuilding the country's economy as well as relationships within the wider global community. I hope that out of this, they are able to redefine business models that meet their needs without putting the security of their citizens at risk in the future. I suspect it will be a long road and my earnest hope is they get the support they will need. And I hope too, that some time soon, the amorphous recession will cease to be blamed by all and sundry and instead, the economic behaviours that brought us to this point in history are investigated, highlighted, outlawed and changed for the better.  If not, many more Saucepan Revolutions will begin to bubble and before long they will boil over into streets worldwide.

Cast a wary eye North as Iceland riots over crisis

Currently being reported as food riots in some blogs, the unrest in Iceland sees a physical manifestation of the financial meltdown that left the country all but bankrupt and, at times, facing severe food shortages. 

Here's the ITN report on YouTube and a report from The Scotsman.  Check on some of the blog conversations and you will see they are being dubbed 'food riots'.  Reviewing what has gone on, the riots are less about food and more about the future people see themselves facing - although I worry that the question of food may come into the protests soon. The actions taken by normally placid Icelandic citizens demonstrate the extent to which trust in the system - and those responsible for running the system - has been lost  We have seen food riots elsewhere in the world throughout this year (April was particulary notable for this)  and although any sort of riot is disturbing, a food riot, perhaps more than any other expresses the desperation people feel when they are cornered and without hope when it comes to the essentials of life. I think we will see more actual food riots from previously peaceful people in the months ahead and not simply because there are food shortages - primarily because people will simply not be able to afford the basics. Here in NZ, the average family food bill has risen by at least $35 - $50 per week in the last twelve months.

Without wishing to be a doom-mongerer - rather acting as an observant forecaster - there's definitely a storm brewing. Good crisis communication starts with tackling and resolving the issue long before it becomes a crisis.  Sadly, the issue has been around for the last eighteen months (longer in many parts of the globe) but very little overt action has been taken to address this fundamental concern for every single person. Hatches are not being battened, the political fallout will be extreme and the social cost immense. Oh dear.

Thanksgiving ahead - but food shortages increase in US towns

There has been a significant increase in the last three weeks in the number of stories coming out of the USA highlighting the problems and shortages facing the country's foodbanks. As times get tougher, more and more people are turning to foodbanks for help - some are reporting increases of up to 40%. Here is an example of a typical situation as described in one of the many reports.  Other reports in the last week indicate that 2007 saw 36.2 million US citizens wondering where their next meal would be coming from, a pretty shocking statistic for somewhere often referred to as the richest country on the planet. One of the many articles on this subject, sparked by a new report by the US Department of Agriculture, was written by James Thalman and gives a fairly rounded picture of the research.

Last month, World Food Day produced statistics that indicated nearly one billion people worldwide were without sufficient food. The financial crisis left Iceland with some very worrying weeks
and predictions in October suggested that similar food shortages would follow elsewhere - and soon.  As the credit crunch starts to bite and the price of food continues to rise, I suspect foodbanks in many countries are going to struggle to cope.  Personally, as Thanksgiving looms, I hope that things improve sufficiently for our neighbours in America to the point where so many of them don't have to worry where the next meal will come from.

Dropping a clanger in space - as non-recoverable as the US CEOs' Congress blunder

My heart went out to the astronaut who dropped her toolbag during a spacewalk earlier this week - see it drift away here. Definitely a non-recoverable position for anyone, but a genuine mistake nonetheless.

The same cannot be said for the CEOs who turned up in their corporate jets in order to beg for cash from an already over-committed US government. What were they thinking?  The Star, among many others, calls it a 'PR storm' and undertaking a rough count up, I unearthed from the last fifteen hours  around 9000 mainstream media articles condemning their rather shortsighted and dim actions - and that is without counting any blog discussions.

Good public relations starts with appropriate action tempered with an understanding of the situation and operating environment. It is also underpinned by a willingness to change behaviour and do the right thing for the communities and publics that provide you with your licence to operate. Fail to do so and that licence to operate, the trust in the organisation, is withdrawn.

You would imagine that these three autocrats would have the wit - or at least the advisors - to enable them realise that what you do has to come before the things you say. These are clever people after all, who hold the fate of millions in their hands.  Yet when they were quizzed as to whether they would sell their jets and take an economy flight home all the hands which should have been immediately visible were nowhere to be seen - instead an embarrassed silence ensued.

Realistically, the money 'saved' by such an action would probably be a drop in the ocean, given that General Motors Corp. CEO Rick Wagoner informed the committee that they were burning through "$5 billion each month."  But - and as always, it is a big but - the CEOs looked like the other CEOs trotted before committees last month; eager to protect their own positions as demonstrated by their actions, rather than the industries and communities they say they are keen to protect.  The US needs its auto industry right now and all is not lost. It has its eye firmly on the emerging markets - Brazil, India, China to name but a few - places where new car ownership has far more potential than existing markets which are saturated and in decline.

Sadly, I suspect the car workers in Detroit will be scraping around for bus fare long before the CEOs in question tumble from the top and hand in their executive gate pass. 

The disgruntled question I am hearing time and again at worker level is why should our tax dollars bail out the corporates who will be axing our jobs and leaving us with nothing anytime soon, while those who make the decision to send us to the streets walk away with enough money to keep a town full of families comfortable over several years?

Pundits suggest that the best route for the carmakers to take would be a Chapter 11 arrangement - think of it as a kind of organised bankruptcy that allows continuance of trade.  Such a continuance of trade that would allow the manufacturers to buy time and buy into the markets that could save their collective futures. A purchase of time in which they might also consider rethinking their business model, the impact on the environment and the ethics of sustainable automotive development allowing the tax dollars to go elsewhere. However, Chapter 11 is resisted apparently because 'it doesn't look good' and 'affects the brand'. 

But probably not as much as a corporate jet fiasco or three million unemployed workers and their families.