Public relations is the diplomatic side of marketing. Some call it “spin.” It’s managing the spread of information. Politicians are great at it. Corporations know it is necessary to avoid a crisis and to put the best positive angle on some less than favorable news.
Sometimes the right words make it better. There are two sides to every story. A company or senator would be foolish not to make their perspective known.
However, there are times when it is just better to fess up. Maybe the boy in my cartoon doesn’t have a public relations problem. He may just need to say, “I’m sorry!” instead of explaining his infraction away.
Sometimes, we need some public relations. Other times, we just need to own it and apologize.
