BulletProofBlog the blog on crisis communications

In a speech before the New York City Bar earlier this month, Robert Khuzami, the new Director of the Division of Enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), outlined the steps he's taking to enhance investor protection across the board. Coming on the heels of Chairman Mary Schapiro's moves to eliminate the "penalty pilot" program, the SEC can now move faster to approve formal orders of investigation - and, thus put a stop to abusive ... READ MORE

This spring, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent letters to 14 pharmaceutical companies warning them that failing to include risk information in Google adwords postings could lead to trouble. As anyone who's ever googled "acid reflux," "high cholesterol," or "hypertension" probably knows, there is simply no way to fit that kind of detailed information into the 70-character space that Google provides - even if the fine print could be made even finer. So, what is ... READ MORE

Conversations about products and brands used to be held around the dinner table, over the backyard fence, or in the aisles of the local supermarket. Now, they're taking place on the blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and countless other social media platforms - and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is taking notice. With an increasing number of consumers turning to the Web for what they believe to be disinterested and unbiased product reviews, concerns about the potential for ... READ MORE

Each week, Bulletproof Blog features exclusive interviews with thought leaders on issues of critical importance to companies and countries. This week, as key provisions of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act are scheduled to go into effect by Friday, we interview David Schmeltzer of Stericycle's industry-leading Expert RECALL team. Mr. Schmeltzer is a veteran of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) who served as the CPSC's Director of Compliance for more than 20 years. As Director, ... READ MORE

In this regular feature, Bulletproof interviews top plaintiffs' attorneys for their perspective on the crises likely to affect businesses in the near future. Today we talk to Maria LaHood, Senior Staff Attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR). Ms. LaHood practices international human rights litigation, seeking to hold government officials and corporations accountable for torture, extrajudicial killings, and war crimes abroad. In June 2009, the CCR scored a resounding victory when Royal Dutch Shell agreed ... READ MORE

On Friday, President Obama said he "could have calibrated" his words more carefully when he criticized the arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. Applying a classic crisis communications term to justify his statements, the President said he hoped the case would provide "a teachable moment" to spur improved relations between minorities and the police. Better he should have obeyed another PR shibboleth: Know the facts before you enter a fight. By jumping into the ... READ MORE

In this regular feature, Bulletproof interviews top plaintiffs' attorneys for their perspective on the crises likely to affect businesses in the near future. Today we talk to Daniel S. Mason, a partner in the San Francisco office of Zelle Hofmann Voelbel & Mason LLP, one of the nation's leading firms on both the plaintiffs' and defense sides of complex litigation. We asked Mr. Mason to address the trends affecting plaintiffs' antitrust actions, an area where ... READ MORE

Millions of Americans like to talk on the phone while they drive - and Congress apparently knows it. The New York Times reports that a National Highway Transportation Administration (NHTSA) study of the dangers posed by distracted drivers was suppressed, at least in part because of fears that the results would anger influential members of Congress. Now, two activist groups - the Center for Auto Safety and Public Citizen - have their hands on the information ... READ MORE

In this regular feature, Bulletproof interviews top plaintiffs' attorneys for their perspective on the crises likely to affect businesses in the near future. Today we talk to Bruce Kaster of Kaster & Lynch PA in Ocala, Fl. Mr. Kaster is universally recognized as the leading plaintiff's lawyer in the United States for defective tire cases as well as an inexhaustible resource of information and guidance for other lawyers handling such cases throughout the country. What effect ... READ MORE

In this regular feature, Bulletproof interviews top plaintiffs' attorneys for their perspective on the crises likely to affect businesses in the near future. Today we talk to Jeffrey B. Kaplan, partner in the Miami office of Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. a global practice representing investors against negligent or dishonest brokers and financial institutions. Among important recent cases, the firm commenced a class action against the IBM Southeast Employees' Federal Credit Union alleging that it ... READ MORE