Don’t touch reporters. Especially when they ask you not to. Twenty-seven times.
Back in May 2010 – shortly before I launched this blog – a media spokesperson created a viral video by responding to a reporter’s questions by repeatedly touching him.
According to SF Weekly, this clip came about when San Francisco ABC 7 reporter Dan Noyes was investigating “alleged misuse of money meant to help ailing patients at Laguna Honda Hospital instead of paying for gourmet perks for administrators.”
Marc Slavin, the hospital’s communications director, is the person you’ll see in the video below. I guess you could say his response was “touching” – but not in the good way. This video is truly astonishing.
Shortly afterwards, Mr. Slavin responded to an inquiry about the incident from SF Weekly. Not only did he fail to apologize, but he actually blamed the reporter for the incident:
“I don’t have much interest in rehashing the exchange with Mr. Noyes. He was intent on disrupting a public meeting rather than scheduling an interview. Even when we did sit down to speak he summarily disregarded our very straightforward presentation of the facts regarding the gift fund accounts. (I’d be happy to send those facts to you as an attachment if you supply your email, or you can find them on lagunahonda.org.)
Mr. Noyes’ disregard for the facts — the clear legality and appropriate use of the funds — resulted in an unfortunate report on the air, which obviously supplied more "gotcha" drama than any legitimate examination of hospital practices. I understand we’re not the first target of Mr. Noyes’ bullying tactics, and likely won’t be the last.”
Perhaps Mr. Slavin is right on the facts. But he ceded every inch of the high ground he could have occupied by responding in such an aggressive, off-putting, and strange manner.
The incident didn’t seem to have much impact. Mr. Slavin is still employed as the hospital’s communications director.
Have the best of the blog delivered to your inbox twice per month! Enter your name in the box on the upper right of the blog to join our mailing list.
Did you miss the 10 worst media disasters of 2011? Click here to catch up!
March 2nd, 2012 at 2:31 pm
Well, I understand what you’re saying about the pr aspect of this story, but may sympathy is entirely with the hospital and its employees.
This “touchy” reporter is in the hospital. It could have had the reporter physically removed. The reporter had no right to be there.
The reporter sounded like a 5 year old, whining, “Don’t touch me!” Slavin kept doing it because he knew it was upsetting the reporter. The reporter threatened to call the police, but he didn’t.
Incidentally, the reporter touched the female hospital employee. Does he know her? Is he a stranger to her? And if he touched her, she touched him.
The reporter obtained his “gotcha” video. But who wins in the long run? Not his viewers. Business people take stock of this nonsense and react accordingly. They more tightly control news of their activity. They more tightly limit media coverage of their activities. Etc.
March 2nd, 2012 at 2:39 pm
David,
If I heard the reporter correctly, he stated that the meeting was “open to the public.” If that’s true, the hospital had little right to remove him.
This video only became a “gotcha” moment due to the strange reaction of the media relations person. The job of communications professionals is to anticipate and prepare for these situations, not make the moment worse. And seriously – what right does a media relations professional have to touch anybody in a professional setting, especially a person who has made multiple requests for them to stop?
Your reaction makes clear that these situations are in the eye of the beholder – I suspect other people agree with you. But I’ll never agree that this was a good way to handle this situation, unless Mr. Slavin’s goal was to create a viral moment that made him look inept at his job.
Thanks, as always, for reading and commenting!
Brad
March 2nd, 2012 at 2:51 pm
“Perhaps Mr. Slavin is right on the facts. But he ceded every inch of the high ground he could have occupied by responding in such an aggressive, off-putting, and strange manner.”
That hits the nail on the head to me. I don’t like ambush interviews unless they’re absolutely necessary, and I don’t know the background in this story, but the repeated touching was weird and off-putting enough to trump my disdain for gotcha reporting and kinda wonder about these people.
March 5th, 2012 at 9:19 am
I actually laughed out loud at the end of the clip when the reporter uttered his final “Don’t touch me.” It reminded me of children in the back seat of the car.
Although it’s my belief that the spokesperson was out of line, the reporter did nothing to distinguish himself either.
March 6th, 2012 at 12:13 pm
It was a public meeting and the communications director’s behaviour was absolutely unprofessional and patronizing, from greeting the reporter (regardless of whether he was expected/unexpected)constantly touching him, getting in his face to grabbing the camera. And then he cancels the meeting? Wow. Mr. Slavin gives communications professionals a bad name.
March 22nd, 2012 at 11:59 pm
Brad,
Actually, the PR person’s handling of the situation completely (albeit most likely unintentionally) undermined the “gotcha” moment this journalist was clearly trying to achieve.
Consider. A much physically larger man confronting a small Asian woman is completely and hysterically unmanned by a smaller guy touching him in what is a mostly gentle fashion. The journalist goes from “friendly questioner” to “hysterical and hostile victim” the moment a smaller man touches him. He’s the one threatening to call the police when he is obviously the most threatening person in the room. He looks like a weak, pathetic bully who’s mad because he didn’t get his way without anyone questioning him.
Seriously. Watch the body language. He goes from smarmy and aggressive to hostile and aggressive in no time. The PR guy exposes him as a fake in seconds. Now, whether or not that’s intentional…
March 23rd, 2012 at 12:04 am
Hi Jim,
Interesting comment – thank you for leaving it on the blog.
I read an article about the incident in which the reporter spoke about that very point. His perspective was that although he was bigger, he wasn’t there in his role as a “bigger man,” but as a working journalist. As such, he thought that responding physically would have been wildly inappropriate, so he was trying to remain as cool and professional as possible. I suspect you don’t think he succeeded in that effort, but thought I’d mention his point-of-view it for what it’s worth.
Thanks again,
Brad
March 23rd, 2012 at 12:53 am
Brad,
Communications analysis is so often focused on spoken words that it is easy to lose sight of what one’s physical presence brings to a moment – and this clip strikes me as just such a moment. Speaking as someone who brings some physicality to an interaction, you cannot forget it, whether you are on the PR side or the news side. Your voice and your body are partners.
Yes, he (the reporter) absolutely failed in the moment to remain cool and professional. Had he maintained a distant, diffident air with a smaller man touching him, he could have diffused the PR man and had his interview. He would have been a man whose substantial presence remained in command of the moment.
Instead, by treating a smaller man as such a dramatic and substantive threat, he came off weak and bullying and insecure. Without knowing the backstory that led to the interview, the reporter came off quite poorly, in no small part because the camera focused on him and treated PR guy as a prop. PR guys biggest mis-step was trying to block the camera, which ought to be taught as a level 101 screw-up for anyone in PR. Block the camera, obviously you’re hiding something BAD.
Best, Jim