ESPN Offers Quintessential Apology

NY Knicks guard, Jeremy Linn
Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images

Before I explain what I respect about ESPN's apology for this weekend's "Chink in the Armor" racist fiasco, let's all take note of my restraint in not producing yet another Jeremy Lin pun. As the plethora of abominable and obnoxious "Linsanity" puns demonstrates, resistance isn't easy - but it also isn't futile.

There, I did it. I made it through my intro with no new puns on Lin's last name. 

Now, on with the apology analysis.

Media outlets, businesses, and organizations of all varieties should take note of the approach ESPN has employed in managing the controversy surrounding racist comments made through their online and on-air channels. After circulating an immediate apology on Saturday, along with a promise to complete a full investigation, the network released the following statement on Sunday.

What makes the network's apology so effective? I can sum it up in three words: quick, decisive, action.

Quick: The on-air comment and online headline in question occurred on Friday night and in the early hours of Saturday morning, respectively. Within hours, by the time I climbed out of bed on Saturday, the network had already issued a general apology, and by mid-morning Sunday, they released a more formal statement which re-iterated their remorse and outlined the steps they had already taken to rectify the situation.

Decisive: ESPN appropriately owned this debacle from the start. The network took full responsibility, completed a quick investigation of the facts, and decided within 48 hours of the initial on-air racial slur how they would proceed. No dilly-dallying or mucking about. No excuses or blame game.

Action: The immediate mea culpa on Saturday, the rapid additional follow-up, one employee terminated, one employee suspended, a clear and concise public communication of the network's actions, and an indication of steps they are taking to make sure this doesn't happen again. 

CEOs - there's your template for damage control. You don't need anything else.

Final proof of ESPN's savvy is the network's decision to broadcast the Knicks/Mavericks NBA game on Sunday afternoon. Featuring Lin and the Knicks demonstrates that ESPN is not afraid to climb right back in the ring, and it provides the network with an opportunity to quickly and neatly crate up the Lin controversy, while they appropriately re-direct the the focus of the conversation to Lin's on-court performance. 

The kicker is that network executives are also keenly aware that showing the Knicks game on Sunday will prove....Lin-strumental to their weekend ratings success.

A Tampon Ad That Really Says "I'm Sorry"

The folks who make o.b. brand tampons apparently made a lot of women angry when they phased out one of their product lines last year. Their new ad campaign offers each upset customer a romantic, musical, and "personal" apology. It's kind of creepy, but mostly clever. 

Because the "personalization" requires you to enter a name, I found the ad to be a little addictive. I can tell you that Jeff doesn't get the full personal apology treatment, but Genevieve and Abigail do.

Click here and give the ad a whirl yourself. It's campy and fun, and you'll be seriously impressed with all the ways they think of to use your name in the ad. 

Baldwin Apologizes to Travelers but Perturbs Greyhound

It sounds too funny to be true, but within a day of the blowup of Alec Baldwin's American Airlines fiasco, the actor has pissed off the folks at Greyhound Bus.

In a Huffington Post article he wrote to express regret for any inconvenience his tantrum caused fellow travelers (kudos for the apology), Baldwin inadvertently offended the Greyhound bus company by complaining that the air travel environment has deteriorated to the equivalent of a "Greyhound experience."

Greyhound CEO Dave Leach handled the comment perfectly by publishing an open letter inviting Baldwin to take a Greyhound trip with him, and noting that passengers are never asked to turn off their electronic devices during the course of a bus trip.

Baldwin's apology to the everyman travelers who were delayed, and who potentially missed connections because of his tirade, was a decent gesture. At this point, he should let the whole thing drop and hope that Ryan Gosling is caught with a transexual hooker so America can move on to a newer and greater scandal.


Related Posts: 7-Letter Word for Spoiled Actor