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The Beacon is the student newspaper of the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, Massachusetts, a small, feisty liberal arts college where the journalism program has a hands on, real-life newspaper. The student news crew percolates all week,collecting interviews and data, writing the stories, editing, laying out and publishing college news, community news, arts and entertainment features, sports coverage, Q & As and delightful student profiles.Under the eye of Professor Jenifer Auger, there's a real live news operation...

We've all seen it: The CEO on his way to his car, limo or plane after a disaster strikes, and the media are staked out. Unpleasant as this may be, your CEO needs to be prepared, calm, collected and free of defensiveness. "No comment" will only make things worse. As a former reporter, I can assure you that when a CEO or other source simply stops, raises a conciliatory hand to quiet the crowd  and invites few questions, immediately the dynamic becomes more cooperative. This doesn't mean rolling over and giving up the store, but taking...

Remember Joe the Plumber? Not exactly a mean-spirited heckler, but a voice in the crowd whose speak-up comment was instantly snagged by John McCain for political mileage in the 2008 presidential campaign. McCain himself got heckled again just this past Memorial Day, the poor fellow. There are indeed far more mean-spirited hecklers than our Plumber Joe, and particularly in a political season, the heckle-ee must make on the spot decisions about whether to respond, how to respond, and whether there might be a kernel of truth or benefit hiding...

Say it right when things go wrong. That's the general rule of the thumb in PR when bad things happen to good companies. So when the chips are down the essential elements of crisis communications must kick in: know your problem inside out, know your audiences, know your message and take charge of delivery. Get in front of the situation and guide the message. You may take a few hits, but in general, candor and cooperation go miles toward restoring credibility and reputation. Journalists often respond positively to genuine candor, as does...

Chin Up for JPMorgan Chase's Dimon When I heard JPMorgan Chase honcho Jamie Dimon has been slogging against a justified tide of criticism for his bank's miserable $2B trading loss last week, and he's being well advised by his people: Don't pass the buck, don't blame anyone, and take your hits. The Washington Post reported: "Dimon, unusually subdued, told shareholders at the JPMorgan annual  meeting that the company’s mistakes were “self-inflicted.” Speaking with  reporters later, he added: “The buck always stops with...