MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
WHEN DISASTER
STRIKES
Handling a PR crisis in today’s digital age
BY CHRISTINA KIEFER
98
comstocksmag.com | March 2019
Embezzlement. Executive misconduct.
Client data breaches. Organizations that
have faced these challenges — and dealt
with the public backlash and fallout —
know firsthand just how difficult it is to
deal with a crisis.
Consider United Airlines back in 2017,
when passengers on an overbooked flight in
Chicago recorded and posted video of airline
staff dragging a passenger, screaming and
bleeding, off the aircraft. Within hours of the
video appearing online, millions had viewed
and shared it across social media. The foot-
age was brutal, and making matters worse
were the conflicting internal and external
messages from United, causing additional
scrutiny against the airline.