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Media Strategy

Statements, interviews, and the stuff that gets misquoted

Crisis Communications

+3

A Korean theater chain gave out a ticket with bullet holes over a victim's seat

Oct 6, 2026

•

5 min read

A Korean theater chain gave out a ticket with bullet holes over a victim's seat

Megabox blamed a tight schedule, team that hadn't seen the actual film, and distributors... and then promised an internal review. Here's why those two halves don't meet.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Geopolitical Risk

+4

Amazon's $1 billion data center pledge came wrapped in a manifesto

Oct 5, 2026

•

5 min read

Amazon's $1 billion data center pledge came wrapped in a manifesto

Amazon argues the country should move faster and tells towns they'll be heard. The one sentence that changes anything, on NDAs, covers new projects only, and Congress has asked about the old ones by October 13.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+3

When Your CEO's Exit Announcement Belongs to Someone Else

Oct 1, 2026

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7 min read

When Your CEO's Exit Announcement Belongs to Someone Else

Mattel's CEO succession announcement was done well under brutal timing. Here's why it still read like a rupture, and the two sentences that might have changed that

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+3

Nidec is losing its CEO and writing off billions

Sep 29, 2026

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6 min read

Nidec is losing its CEO and writing off billions

Nidec confirmed its CEO is going and a very large loss is coming, then let media fill the vacuum. After a year of estimates that only went up, here's what I'd tell any CCO or board heading into the same week.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+3

What it takes for misinformation to earn a CEO's rebuttal

Sep 28, 2026

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6 min read

What it takes for misinformation to earn a CEO's rebuttal

Walmart went to the top when a false claim hit its core promise, matched what people already feared, and landed in a week when silence would read as a position.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+3

A public callout got Molly Sims what she asked for. Then the narrative shifted

Sep 23, 2026

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6 min read

A public callout got Molly Sims what she asked for. Then the narrative shifted

Going public bought Sims a fast yes and also a comment thread she couldn't survive. Brown conceded a five-day-old product name and came out the grown-up. Plus: Xbox, UNGA, and diesel

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+3

Buffett's last letter puts culture above a trillion dollars in assets

Sep 22, 2026

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5 min read

Buffett's last letter puts culture above a trillion dollars in assets

Reputation just got a job title above the CEO's at a trillion-dollar company. Here's what the letter says, where the role gets tested, and the follow-up that should come next.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+2

The apology Converse sent, and the one it should have

Sep 21, 2026

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5 min read

The apology Converse sent, and the one it should have

The Converse apology, graded. Plus the week ahead: UNGA opens tomorrow, and Germany's biggest union takes to the streets.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Geopolitical Risk

+4

Your company’s chatbot is also now a spokesperson

Sep 18, 2026

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4 min read

Your company’s chatbot is also now a spokesperson

Your AI assistant is speaking for the company and I'm willing to bet comms has never seen its answers.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+2

Starbucks diagnosed the problem on day two. lululemon's new CEO named a listening tour

Sep 16, 2026

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4 min read

Starbucks diagnosed the problem on day two. lululemon's new CEO named a listening tour

Lululemon's new CEO memo borrows the founder's themes and leaves out the plan. Starbucks' Brian Niccol is cashing his in two years later.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Geopolitical Risk

+4

No AI CEO made anyone less scared this weekend

Sep 14, 2026

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6 min read

No AI CEO made anyone less scared this weekend

Two AI CEOs were asked if AI could kill us all but neither answer was really for us. Plus, Trump's response, Kroger's cut forecast and Siri AI's first day.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

How Apple’s new CEO claimed the future without rejecting the past

Sep 10, 2026

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3 min read

How Apple’s new CEO claimed the future without rejecting the past

Apple's new CEO echoed Steve Jobs in his first product keynote and the iPhone's biggest promise now has a deadline. Plus, Nike's out of the S&P 100.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

The Canada trade war has only one corporate statement

Sep 9, 2026

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4 min read

The Canada trade war has only one corporate statement

Bombardier's answer to President Trump was a map. Why Harley, Diageo and the brewers have their own reasons for saying nothing.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Layoffs & Restructuring

+6

VW and Managing Change with a Long Middle

Sep 8, 2026

•

6 min read

VW and Managing Change with a Long Middle

VW's factory closure deadline is 10 months away. When the outcome is still being negotiated, here's what's left to communicate. Plus, why do apologies keep going up with comments turned off?

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+2

Two CEO departures within 24 hours

Sep 4, 2026

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4 min read

Two CEO departures within 24 hours

Two CEO departure announcements and what they tell us about the companies' most important audience. Plus, Amazon told reporters one reason for its vague order emails and its own customer service reps another.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+4

Apple vs Lululemon: the CEO handoff

Sep 2, 2026

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5 min read

Apple vs Lululemon: the CEO handoff

Same CEO succession calendar, opposite outcomes at Apple and Lululemon. Plus, the full comms teardown of how Apple choreographed Tim Cook's departure.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+3

The Good Good Golf fallout continues

Aug 31, 2026

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4 min read

The Good Good Golf fallout continues

Good Good's CEO sent a very bad bad 3 am post. Plus, Gap's CEO says Old Navy's problem is pricing, so why was his answer about ad views?

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+3

Callaway (finally) pays up

Aug 28, 2026

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4 min read

Callaway (finally) pays up

After several partial statements, Callaway finally gets it right. Plus, Target apologized perfectly and still got rejected because it has a massive trust deficit

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Geopolitical Risk

+3

Meta's settlement comms made it a competitor's problem

Aug 27, 2026

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4 min read

Meta's settlement comms made it a competitor's problem

Meta is paying $5 billion to get TikTok and YouTube regulated. Plus, inflation is hot again and a rate hike is back on the table. Here's what this means for your internal/external messaging.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

Neutrogena broke its silence and leaves more to answer for

Aug 21, 2026

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4 min read

Neutrogena broke its silence and leaves more to answer for

Neutrogena issued a statement that admits a feeling and blames the wait on a grieving family. Plus Goldman counted who's talking about AI on earnings calls

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

Where are you, Neutrogena?

Aug 19, 2026

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4 min read

Where are you, Neutrogena?

Neutrogena declines comment through a second Panettiere news cycle, so I wrote a statement for them. Plus NIPSCO's words are fine amid its weeklong outage but the substance isn't backing it up.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

Saber's comms team wrote a good statement and the CEO destroyed it

Aug 17, 2026

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3 min read

Saber's comms team wrote a good statement and the CEO destroyed it

The Tata chairman's honest resignation letter cost $4.6 billion and a Saber statement that survived less than a day once the CEO started talking.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Geopolitical Risk

+4

The AI manifesto wars

Aug 11, 2026

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2 min read

The AI manifesto wars

Zuck joins the CEO manifesto trend

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Media Strategy

+2

Retailers are racing to prove they're cheaper while paychecks shrink

Aug 10, 2026

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4 min read

Retailers are racing to prove they're cheaper while paychecks shrink

The American consumer got poorer, retailers are naming prices down to the penny while DC tries to claim them, and Wendy's announced a turnaround it hasn't finished writing.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George

Crisis Communications

+4

Chipotle had answers ready. OpenAI's influencers did not

Aug 5, 2026

•

4 min read

Chipotle had answers ready. OpenAI's influencers did not

How Chipotle earned a health official's vouch mid-outbreak, and the brand trip that came without an answer key.

Jennifer George
Jennifer George
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