Here we go again. This time, U.S. food and health officials are searching for the source of a 16-state salmonella outbreak linked to three types of raw tomatoes. Supermarkets, school lunch programs, and restaurants across North America are pulling those varieties and more from their shelves and menus. Over the past several months, well-publicized outbreaks of food-borne illness have been linked to cantaloupes, grapes, green onions, and peaches. And of course, who can forget the six-week-long ... Read More

On Wednesday of last week, European fisherman took to the streets of Brussels to demand that the European Union do more to curb skyrocketing oil prices – which they say are driving them out of business. The demonstrators were less than civil – overturning cars, lighting flares, and violently clashing with police before order was restored. While the incident was unfortunate, it does offer us the opportunity to provide a few pointers for dealing with raucous ... Read More

Earlier this week, we discussed how radio silence is the wrong way to approach crisis communications. Yesterday, we were offered further evidence of this fact when it was learned that the Indonesian government had covered up the fact that a 15-year-old girl died of bird flu last month – marking the 109th victim in the nation that has been most affected by the disease. Responding to criticism of the cover up, Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari ... Read More

Elisabeth Rosenthal’s piece in Tuesday’s New York Times, entitled “In Spain, Water Is a New Battleground,” highlights what could become the marquee environmental issue of 21st Century. In the piece about farmers and developers fighting over water rights in Spain’s Murcia Province, Rosenthal cites scientists that warn “the battles of yesterday were fought over land…those of the present center on oil…but those of the future – a future made hotter and drier by climate change in ... Read More

The fatal collapse of a construction crane in New York City last week raises critical strategic communications questions for construction companies and developers around the world – each of whom should be watching this continually-developing story with keen interest. Last week’s collapse follows on the heels of a similar fatal accident in March – also in New York City. Mayor Bloomberg has promised investigations. Litigation and criminal charges loom. And the Internet is buzzing with activity ... Read More

As food prices around the world continue to rise, and the poorest global citizens go hungry as a result, public demonstrations – and even riots like those that occurred in Somalia last month – could come with greater frequency and lead to plenty of vigorous finger-pointing. Governments and agri-industry companies will be likely targets for blame. Negative press coverage will likely be inevitable. And thus, preparing to deal with high-profile reports of starvation-fueled demonstrations is a ... Read More