Fire Everyone in FEMA Press Office

Total, complete PR amateurs. Embarrassing, regardless of which side of the political aisle you're on.

Just what WAS the purpose of the news conference? (I still don't know.) What vital info did FEMA have that had to be disseminated on 15-minutes notice?

Answers: You don't call a news conference on 15-minutes notice, unless you have some real news to announce. You don't plant press staff in the audience to ask questions. You don't call a news conference and then allow phone-connected reporters only to listen in without asking questions. A news release (at most) would have sufficed.

Forget the "reprimands," "new procedures," and the like. Effective and ethical media relations is achieved through facts and transparency, not spin and manipulation.

This stunt is a firing offense, for every FEMA staffer who participated in this charade.

UPDATE: A big "thank you!" to Ed Morrissey at Captain's Quarters for the link.

LA Lakers, CA Fires: Good Decision, Mixed Message

The NBA's Los Angeles Lakers today decided to cancel a pre-season game scheduled to be played in San Diego this week. A smart, responsible decision by the team that reflects the seriousness of the situation unfolding in Southern California. Unfortunately, the team's senior vice president for business operations made a statement that might suggest some disagreement within the team's management about what to do--and it unnecessarily casts doubt upon the team's motives behind the decision:

After many internal discussions about many different factors, we've concluded that this is simply the right thing to do. The people of San Diego have been very supportive of us over the
years and in turn we want to be supportive of them in this time of crisis. [emphasis mine]

Question: If cancelling the game was so "simple," then why were "many internal discussions about many different factors" required? A better response: "No discussion was required. It is the right thing to do. Period."