Reputation Cleanup after the USC Admissions Scandal

My name is Bryce Tom, founder of Metal Rabbit Media, a leading reputation management firm. Here’s my advice to Lori Loughlin, Felicity Huffman, and all the other parents caught up in the unprecedented admissions scandal. It’s a rough road ahead, and plenty of stories have already been written about the fallout, but like other scandals before it, this too shall pass. Managing and rehabilitating your long term reputation should be your main focus right now. IMMEDIATE TERM: LAY LOW From a traditional PR/media relations standpoint, the best advice is to lay low, listen to your lawyers, and don’t do anything. There is no positive press angle that will distract from the onslaught of bad press right now. Staying quiet is hard to do when you see your name being dragged through the mud but any sound byte and any quote will only prolong the media cycle. From a digital standpoint, lock down your social media. Go private, turn off comments and don’t post anything. It will be tempting to speak up and share your side of the story, especially in the face of the thousands of comments appearing on news stories, social channels, etc., but right now, silence is your best friend. SHORT TERM: DIGITAL REHABILITATION Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman are definitely receiving the lion’s share of negative press but there are nearly 50 other people named in the scandal. While they may not be Hollywood celebrities, the impact of a negative story like this on a business executive may actually be worse. Hollywood scandals are a dime a dozen, and with time, this scandal will be replaced by the next juicy story. The short term effects are already being felt: Loughlin has been fired from Fuller House and Hallmark Channel. Huffman’s role in the upcoming ‘When They See Us’ creates an optics headache for Netflix; but I have no doubt both actresses will work again. Reputation is a hard thing to quantify and it’s biggest effects are usually unseen. For example, there are quite a few C-suite or former C-suite executives named in the scandal. Their Google results are nearly 100% negative and as private citizens, they have far less content to flush out the negatives. While Loughlin and Huffman will likely take on new roles and have redemption arcs written in the media, what about private citizens? There’s no way to quantify how many business deals are NOT happening because of this scandal and how many investments are being diverted because of their (former) managing partner’s involvement. Optics are everything in the business world, and billions of dollars in investments may be directed elsewhere as a result. Unlike the public firing of celebrities, these effects that go unsaid, can be far more catastrophic. Okay, we know it’s bad, so what can we do? 1. Lay low and remain silent 2. Take a digital inventory — blogs, social channels, profiles, positive news clippings — this will be key in the next phase when it’s time for digital rehabilitation 3. Do NOT delete your social channels — you want history and age on all your channels, so do NOT delete them, just go dark 4. Start generating content — the time is not right to launch any new blogs or sites, but you will down the road, so in this quiet period, spend time documenting a hobby or passion project 5. Finesse your board appointments and advisory roles — do everything in your power to retain these roles; it may require some uncomfortable conversations, but you’ll quickly find out who’s in your corner, and these relationships will be essential down the road Make no mistake, you’ve got a long and painful road ahead, but with the right strategy and team, nothing is unsurmountable — including reputation rehabilitation. #reputationmanagement #celebrities #help #crisis