Public relations can be a complicated topic. PR officials have to not only actively create a positive public image for an organization, they must also effectively utilize external communication to counteract any failures of a company’s internal communication. A few weeks ago, this blog featured an article about the vital role internal communication plays in projecting an ideal image. This article will now explore what happens when that advice gets ignored and what needs to happen in the aftermath of a resulting PR crisis. Specifically, the recent controversy surrounding the 2021 Academy Awards ceremony will provide a case study to apply different strategies to counteract negative PR.
First a little background is necessary to understand the scope of the situation. This year thanks in part to the unique challenges presented by COVID-19, the Academy decided to change the format of their annual award ceremony. Not only did the show lack a host, but also did away with traditional show numbers. This, however, is not what gained the most attention. Going against tradition, the Academy decided to move the Best Actor Award to the end of the night, a spot usually held for Best Picture. This got many viewers interested because one of the nominees, the late Chadwick Boseman, was favored to win. What happened instead was the award went to Anthony Hopkins, who was asleep at home, and presenter Joaquin Phoenix hurriedly accepted the award on his behalf, and the ceremony abruptly ended (Holmes). The Academy also commissioned digital artwork of Boseman’s likeness for the ceremony (Grobar).
After this, there was a significant amount of online backlash. From the outside it appeared that the Academy purposefully moved the Best Actor Category to last to capitalize on audiences who were hopeful the late Boseman would receive the award (it should be noted that Boseman’s widow and children were in attendance). Whether these accusations are true does not matter, either they cynically designed the award show to exploit a beloved actor's death, or they designed the entire ceremony without considering the implication of these choices (Holmes). In addition, the Academy received criticism for not allowing Hopkins, who could not attend the ceremony in person, to receive it over video, nor did they allow a representative to receive it on his behalf, even though he requested this accommodation (Blauvet).
In this scenario, The Academy was already engaged in a type of crisis management. Specifically, they were concerned with the natural crisis, in which a company must announce a change in procedure in response to a natural disaster (Amaresan). In this case they had to abandon the traditional structure of the Oscar ceremony to take into account the obstacles raised by the COVID pandemic. While the Oscars tend to rely on the novelty of having an ungodly amount of star power in one room (the appeal for many is to see the most famous stars in the entertainment industry gathered for a massive party), that was simply not an option during an ongoing health crisis (Holmes). Even as the Academy played with their established formula, the message they tried to project in their marketing was that the ceremony would continue as normal. In addition, the Academy faced a serious problem with the dearth of eligible movies released due to health concerns. The lack of high profile movies may have been why they finished the night with the Best Actor Award; they were essentially hoping the star power of that category might be able to provide a dramatic finale to the night.
The problem was, the Academy did not properly communicate these contingencies within the organization. From the reaction from presenter Phoenix to the public confusion on how to present awards, it is blatantly obvious that many people within the organization were within the dark. When handling any sort of crisis, it is important that all relevant parties who have a hand in shaping an organization’s message have sufficient information to address the problem (“Council Post”). This lack of transparency has now evolved the situation onto a possible organizational crisis, where a company must respond to some perceived wrongdoing (Amaresan). In addition, an environment where everyone was fully prepared for the change in schedule might have resulted in some team members properly identifying how many of the Academy’s decisions might come off in poor taste.
Now that the crisis evolved into negative PR, the Academy needs to take certain steps to counteract it. The first thing they need to do is identify the specific problem. Utilizing social media can be helpful. While sites such as Facebook and Twitter have the unfortunate side effect of acting as an echo chamber for minor and unproductive voices, it can still provide some salient anecdotal evidence to understand the problem. In this case, social media trends and blogs all express criticism over the perceived opportunism of Boseman’s nomination, insufficient attempts to make participation in the ceremony possible for high risk nominees such as Hopkins, and the use of environmentally damaging digital artwork. Next, the team needs to identify which topics are highest priority, since a PR team's job is not to address every story but instead to provide context for the situation (“Council Post”). Finally, the Academy needs to engage with the discussion in a civil and authentic manner, in order to win back the favor of the public. This interaction should be highly controlled and visible on any channels that feature the backlash in question.
The buzz surrounding the most recent Oscar ceremony demonstrates how complex crisis management can become if not handled properly. When faced with a natural crisis that prevented a traditional ceremony, the Academy lacked a thorough crisis plan and failed to communicate important details within the organization. Even more important is how they have handled the negative PR. While it might seem inconsequential to anyone not invested in award shows, it sows distrust in their primary audience, whose viewership provides the major measure of success for the ceremony. After years of people accusing the show of elitism when deciding winners, and dwindling ratings, there is no excuse for the Academy to not have a crisis management plan in place for such an occasion.
References
Amaresan, Swetha. “6 Crisis Communication Plan Examples & How to Write Your Own [Template].” HubSpot Blog, 26 Jan. 2021, blog.hubspot.com/service/crisis-communication-plan.
Blauvelt, Christian. “Oscars Rejecting Anthony Hopkins' Zoom Was a Slap in the Face to This Viewer with Chronic Illness.” IndieWire, IndieWire, 1 May 2021, www.indiewire.com/2021/05/oscars-anthony-hopkins-speech-accessibility-chronic-illness-1234634399/.
“Council Post: 13 Tactics To Counter Negative Publicity When Internal Issues Become PR Crises.” Edited by Expert Panel, Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 23 Mar. 2021, www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2021/03/23/13-tactics-to-counter-negative-publicity-when-internal-issues-become-pr-crises/?sh=4cfb5a895dba.
Grobar, Matt. “Chadwick Boseman NFT Sparks Controversy, Gets Redesign Following Late Actor's Oscars Loss.” Deadline, Deadline, 28 Apr. 2021, deadline.com/2021/04/chadwick-boseman-nft-sparks-controversy-after-late-actors-oscars-loss-1234744606/.
Holmes, Linda. “7 Takeaways From The Train-Station Oscars.” NPR, NPR, 26 Apr. 2021, www.npr.org/2021/04/26/990759778/7-takeaways-from-the-train-station-oscars.
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