National does not want retirees talking to reporters

[RememberSchiff]

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2012/08/boy-scouts-hq-does-not-want-retirees-talking-to-reporters-about-controversial-issues.html/

 

Aug 2, BSA retirees received a letter from Stephen Medlicott, National Director, The Marketing Group (I thought he was Director of External Communication ???). Retirees were asked not to talk not to reporters regarding certain issues.

 

When the above reporter questioned if this was intimidation, Deron Smith, the BSAs public relations director, responded Scouting takes all issues surrounding youth protection extremely seriously, and therefore, as part of our standard operating procedure, we engage our stakeholders by keeping them up to date on relevant developments,

 

Corporate policy or bullying your own retirees?

 

My $0.02

 

 

[WasE61]

Hmmm...sounds like lawyers and BSA brass in panic mode.

 

Whenever you tell people to shut up, you're usually preparing for a "Shaving Cream" storm.

 

Sounds like a marketing guy was involved as well...any time you "engage your stakeholders" ...

 

There is clearly a storm brewing around BSA and the "files" ... part of the aftermath of the Penn State fiasco. Eventually, all the records are going to get pulled out of BSA's hands, without any redaction.

[eisely]

Every large organization goes through this from time to time. It is a difficult line to walk: trying to control the message versus over controlling employees and former employees. I don't see anything special to get alarmed about. If I were a retired professional I wouldn't want to talk to reporters even if I thought I had something to say, because once you become a source they will never leave you alone. If the organization had been involved in illegal activities, I would be talking to my lawyer before I would talk to any reporter.

[SeattlePioneer]

So it's fine for news media types to call BSA retirees looking for dirt but it's NOT OK for BSA to communicate with ITS OWN retirees to discourage comments that might prove damaging?

 

THAT sounds hypocritical!

 

I can just imagine reporters trying to engage bored retirees in reminiscing about their past in Scouting, and then parsing every syllable later on for something critical to print.

 

Sounds like a smart move to me!

 

\

[shortridge]

Without seeing the entire text of the letter, it's difficult to say much about this situation.

 

If there were anti-disparagement clauses in their contracts, that adds a whole 'nother dimension to it.

 

But journalists often call retired or former officials or employees to gather information, whether it's juicy stuff or just useful background in understanding how an unfamiliar organization works. When an organization pulls up the drawbridge and mans the battlements and refuses to answer substantive questions, that's often the only way to get information.

 

Every person has the right to say no to an interview, and to end the interview at any time. Presumably the BSA provided media training to these men and women during their long careers. They're all adults. I'm a bit baffled by what Irving is seeking to protect against.

 

[SeattlePioneer]

>

 

 

That's right, they are all adults. A reminder about how they can be exploited by the media is in order, in my opinion.

 

Reporters aren't calling around to retired Scouters and Scouting professionals just to pass the time of day.

[RememberSchiff]

I would like to read the letter. Can anyone here transcribe it?

 

If the tone is intimidating that would just be counter-productive to the source. Retirees could just comment off the record as apparently one did for the article or anonymously blog. Even if in place, anti-disparagement clauses become difficult to enforce.

 

I too bristle whenever I hear a talking head use corporate-speak words like "stakeholder"... seems out-of-place in Scouting to this old scouter. And don't call me a stakeholder.

 

My $0.02(This message has been edited by RememberSchiff)

[Basementdweller]

My company has the same policy......

 

If we are contacted by the media we are first to contact legal before talking... we are strongly encouraged to just not due it.

 

 

 

[Twocubdad]

This is part of the game news hacks play with PR hacks (I've worked on both sides of the keyboard.) The news hack love exposing what they perceive as the dark, manipulative inner-workings of the PR side. It's a cheap shot, because they know no one gets to expose the dark, manipulative inner-workings of the news side.

 

Of course ham-fistedness from BSA is nothing new to us.

 

With an online blog, it would sure be easy to post the entire letter, but note this fellow didn't do that. He did go to the trouble of posting the letterhead/logo from the letter. Seeing that certainly contributed a great deal to my understanding of the matter....

 

As Short says, without seeing the whole letter, it's hard to gauge its real tone and intent. The blog does say the letter updated the retirees on the outcome of a lawsuit. Was it is a four-page letter with one line about referring reporters to the PR guys or the other way around? Specifically, what threats were made? Is the BSA retirement plan set up such that retirees can lose their benefits for violating this? Has that ever happened before?

 

A real reporter would be all about presenting the facts. Apparently the Dallas News reporter doesn't want us to have the facts (or just to lazy to report them) so we can make up our own minds. Rather, we should take his word that this is something nefarious. Or maybe the point is to just embarrass BSA.

 

I'd call this sloppy journalism, but I'm not sure I can call it journalism at all.

[skeptic]

It is doubtful that any "real" journalists work for media that might be large enough to get picked up regularly. The basics of a story, as I learned, who, what, where, why, and how are seldom all found in any of these types of reports. Who and what are the main keys it appears, depending on what they are trying to do with the respective hack piece. Maybe they should start printing these things in yellow, just to reinforce the type of so called journalism it is.

[howarthe]

I understand how a company can ask its employees not to speak to the press, but I don't get how they can ask retirees, unless they receive a pension, I suppose. Americans accept limits tot heir free speech all the time, usually its expensive. In this case its punitive. I don't like it. I have a personal rule never to talk to the press about anything because I think people on the street always sound like idiots when they answer questions on camera and I want to avoid looking like an idiot, but I blog all the time, and I would bristle if asked not to blog about certain topics.

[BSA24]

I don't know if the intent was to create a chilling effect on retirees or if it was to legitimately ask them for their support.

 

It was a amateur hour move by BSA, though, and will play poorly in the press and make them look more desperate than they are. Or are they?

 

[SeattlePioneer]

Hello How,

 

 

>

 

 

You are doing on your own initiative just what BSA is suggesting!

 

You recognize that reporters USUALLY have their own agenda and are willing to exploit their sources to get what they want.

 

By contrast, when you blog you are the one controlling the result.

 

 

[NJCubScouter]

When I see the word "blog" I assume I am not getting "journalism" anyway, just someone's opinion, even if its on a "news" site.

 

One thing I have noticed in recent years is an increasing trend for "online newspapers" (such as the "Patch" which covers communities in some parts of the country, one town at a time, but also web sites of some more traditional newspapers) is that when a document is being discussed, to include with the story a link to the actual document. That way the reader can decide for him/herself what the document really means rather than just relying on the reporter's summary, which may contain some "spin", whether intentionally or unintentionally. Apparently that was not done here... but like I said, it's just a blog anyway.(This message has been edited by njcubscouter)