How to Handle Public Panic With Public Relations

By Emma Stevens

Social media has forever changed the way crisis PR works. Media is constant and information spreads like wildfire. For PR professionals it can feel like you will never keep or catch up, especially when a crisis occurs. Most recently, a good example of social media that created chaos is the coronavirus outbreak. Articles, tweets, snap stories and Instagram posts flood us all with news, sometimes incorrect and targeted information. Social media allows all of us to be the “experts” on all things corona. This is detrimental for everyone concerned, and exactly why we have PR professionals to try to contain  misinformation and spread helpful information. So how do we do this? 

The first thing to consider is what the key message is for the crisis. As a professional, you should dig for the correct information and distribute only this. Second, use simple language that can’t be easily misunderstood or spread incorrectly. In the case of the coronavirus, some PR professionals are ignoring the science and statistics that can be easily obtained from the World Health Organization’s (WHO) very up-to-date website, in favor of news outlets that use inflammatory headlines that pull in readers at the expense of accurate information. This is not integrous and doesn’t do readers or the health care professionals who are in the thick of things any favors.

When it comes to crisis PR, constant communication is key. Even if you don’t have all the information it is still necessary to get ahead of the false information and hysteria. All of us should have go-to resources we can depend on for good information, such as WHO, BBC News, Forbes, etc. It is our responsibility to know where we can go for the “real” news so that what we’re posting about is honest and accurate.

Additionally, consider your audience and where they tend to go for news. Much of young people’s news comes from social media, so carefully consider how you will override and/or discredit invalid or out-of-context information. According to Gil Bashe, managing partner of global health at Finn Partner, “In the absence of an authoritative source, a void is created and people fill the void with what they think.” What a layperson is thinking is often rooted in the fear promoted by false news outlets. A person without any background knowledge in viruses, who is on a 24-hour news cycle that she or he is not checking for accuracy, may go to the worst-case scenarios. According to a study done by MIT, fake news is “70% more likely to be retweeted than true stories,” in large part because it’s more “thrilling.” Be the professional who figures out how to spread accurate information in such a way that your audience comes to you rather than your competitor.

Finally, I want to highlight the importance of PR being a human interest job. Currently, people are using sources like Snapchat news and quick stories to point out possible patient zeros. People’s lives are being forever ruined by a single snapshot. As a PR professional this would be one of my top priorities for regulation. In the case of a virus, it is critical to reinforce the true cause and deter people from targeting and pointing fingers.