When a Crisis Hits, “We’re Proud of Ourselves” Is the Wrong Message

A new food safety crisis involving Taco Bell offers an important reminder for every organization facing a serious reputational threat: when people are getting sick, this is not the time for self-congratulation. It is the time for empathy, accountability, and action.

According to reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), more than 1,644 cases (as of today) of cyclosporiasis have been linked to shredded iceberg lettuce served at certain Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia. Ninety-four people have reportedly been hospitalized. Federal investigators traced the lettuce to a single supplier in Mexico.

As part of its response, Taco Bell stated that it had taken immediate action to remove potentially affected lettuce from restaurants. That is exactly the type of decisive operational response stakeholders expect during a crisis. However, the company also said it was "proud to have consistently acted quickly and proactively to protect our guests."

From a media training and crisis communications perspective, that sentence isn’t great.

Read the Room

Whenever customers become ill, are injured, lose money, or experience hardship because of a situation involving your organization, stakeholders are not looking for a victory lap. They are looking for concern, compassion, and reassurance.

A company may very well have acted quickly. It may have followed procedures perfectly. It may have done everything regulators expected.

But when hundreds or thousands of people have been affected, telling the public how proud you are of your response can sound a little tone-deaf.

The public's first question is not:

"How well did the company handle this?"

Their first question is:

"Are people okay?"

A Better Communications Approach

In situations like this, the most effective messaging sequence is usually:

1. Express concern for those affected.

2. Acknowledge the seriousness of the situation.

3. Explain what actions are being taken.

4. Commit to transparency and ongoing cooperation.

5. Thank customers and stakeholders for their patience.

Notice what's missing from that list: self-praise.

When an organization highlights its own performance too early, it risks shifting the focus away from affected individuals and toward itself. That can create unnecessary criticism and distract from the actions being taken to address the problem.

Empathy Before Reputation

One of the biggest mistakes leaders make during a crisis is worrying about reputation before demonstrating empathy.

However, the fastest way to protect a reputation is often to focus on the people who have been impacted.

Consider the difference between these two approaches; which message is more effective?

Message #1:

"We're proud of how quickly we responded to this situation."

Message #2:

"We're deeply concerned about those who have become ill. We are working closely with health officials, removing potentially affected products, and doing everything possible to protect our customers."

Both statements communicate action. Only one puts affected individuals first.

What Media Trained Leaders Understand

Experienced spokespersons know that every crisis message is judged through an emotional lens. In the battle between facts and emotion, emotion is going to win every time.

During a foodborne illness outbreak, customers, regulators, the media and elected officials are listening for signs that the organization understands the gravity of the situation.

Messages that appear defensive, congratulatory, or self-focused can quickly become news stories themselves.

The most effective leaders demonstrate three things:

• Empathy

• Accountability

• Commitment to action

Recognition for a well-managed response can come later—from regulators, customers, or independent observers.

It should not come first from the organization itself.

The Big Lesson

In a crisis, being proud of your response may be understandable internally. Employees may have worked around the clock. Teams may have acted quickly and responsibly.

But public messages shouldn’t be about what the company feels about itself.

The messages need to be about concern and accountability.

When illness, injury, or public concern is involved, the safest communications rule is simple:

Show empathy first. Explain your actions second. Save the self-congratulations for another day.

Why You Can’t Get Media Trained by Asking AI or Googling It

Imagine somebody dreams of becoming a concert pianist. They buy a stack of books on music theory, read every article they can find online about finger placement and posture, and watch hours of YouTube videos on technique. But they never touch a piano. Would you expect them to perform at Carnegie Hall?

Not so much.

Media training works the same way.

Reading about how to handle a tough interview or craft a compelling soundbite is useful—but it’s not enough. Just like playing the piano, speaking to the media is a skill that requires practice, feedback, and real-time coaching. You need to hear how you sound, see how you come across, and learn how to pivot under pressure. That doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and it certainly doesn’t happen by scrolling through articles.

The Stats Speak for Themselves

A recent study found that media training using on-camera practice and feedback improved communication effectiveness with 78% accuracy in predicting successful interview performance. That’s not just theory—it’s measurable impact.

Moreover, companies with comprehensive training programs (including media skills) report 218% higher revenue per employee and 24% higher profit margins. That’s because well-trained spokespeople protect and elevate the brand, especially in high-stakes situations.

And here’s another eye-opener: verbal communication accounts for only 7% of social perception. The rest? Non-verbal cues like body language, tone, and facial expressions—all of which are honed through live coaching, not reading.

Why Real Training Matters

Media interviews are high-stakes performances. You’re not just answering questions—you’re representing your brand, your organization, or your personal reputation. And just like a pianist needs a teacher to correct technique and guide interpretation, you need a media coach to help you refine your message, manage your nerves, and stay in control of the narrative.

So yes, read the articles. Watch the videos. But don’t stop there. If you want to be truly prepared, invest in real media training. Because when the spotlight’s on, you don’t want to be the person who read about playing the piano—you want to be the one who’s practiced every note.

When the Message Gets Lost

One of the most important rules in media training is this:

Your audience decides what your message is—not you.

Earlier this year, Air Canada found itself facing criticism after a video tribute from CEO Michael Rousseau following a tragic accident. The intended message was one of sympathy and respect for the victims and their families. Instead, much of the public conversation focused on the CEO’s inability to communicate in French and what that represented to many Canadians. The controversy quickly became the story.

Whether you agree with the criticism or not is beside the point.

The communications lesson is that audiences rarely judge a message in isolation. They view it through the lens of expectations, context and credibility.

In media interviews and public presentations, we often see the same challenge. Leaders focus intensely on what they want to say but spend less time considering how the audience is likely to receive it.

A spokesperson may have accurate information, but if they appear defensive, that becomes the story.

A CEO may have a strong announcement, but if they seem unprepared, that becomes the story.

An organization may be expressing genuine concern, but if the delivery misses audience expectations, the conversation can quickly shift away from the intended message.

Before any media interview, presentation or public statement, ask yourself three questions:

• What do I want people to remember?

• What might distract from that message?

• How will this be interpreted by audiences who do not already agree with me?

The best communicators don’t just prepare their message.

They prepare for how their audience will experience it.

And sometimes, that distinction makes all the difference.

Off the Record

Pssst.  I need to tell you something and it’s strictly “off the record.”  Don’t tell anybody but… it’s probably not a great idea to make “off the record” comments to a reporter.

Pretty much everybody has heard the expression, “off the record.”  In fact, many people wrongly believe that just because they tell a reporter something is “off the record” it means their comments will never see the light of day.

That’s not exactly how it works.

Everybody loves a good secret. There's something tantalizing about the idea of whispers and revelations that are just for us so when you tell a reporter that something is “off the record,” you’ll certainly have their interest. 

But here’s the thing:  How do you know your “off the record” comments will remain “off the record?”

To be fair, many of the big media outlets try to abide by a code of conduct or journalistic standards and it’s true that everybody I’ve ever worked with in the news business has strived for accuracy and most try to be objective. 

However, as they say, there are no guarantees in life.  Reporters are human beings and human beings sometimes make mistakes.  The other thing to remember is that, although the news business is a noble profession, not everybody in the profession is all that noble.

Some people who haven't been media trained seem to think that before reporters are allowed to become members of the media, they need to swear an oath to maintain high ethical standards!  That may be the case with members of the medical profession, but with members of the media, not so much.

Here’s how “off the record” is supposed to work:  Before speaking to the reporter, you ask if your comments can be off the record.  At that point, the reporter can then accept or decline the offer.

If the journalist accepts the offer, ethically, the journalist should not publish or broadcast the information.  In fact, they shouldn’t even mention it to anybody.

But just because a reporter agrees to keep your comments “off the record,”  it doesn’t mean it’s legally binding. 

Just last year, there was an incident that sparked a big debate amongst journalists.  A reporter was sent an email with the subject line: “Off the Record.”   The reporter had never agreed to keep the contents of the email secret and the information was published.  The person sending the email to the journalist had assumed that the subject line, “Off the Record,” meant the information was safe.  They were wrong.

The term “off the record” was introduced way back in the 1930s when most people got their news from newspapers and newsreels in movie theatres.  There was even a song called “Off the Record,” performed by James Cagney in the 1942 film, “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”

In other words, the expression has been around for a while; long before people were able to share information in a nanosecond with the touch of a screen and way before everyone with a cellphone became a reporter.

In our media training sessions, we advise clients against telling a reporter something “off the record” because there’s a danger it could come back to bite them.

It’s safer to assume that everything you say to a reporter is fair game and that includes everything you say over the phone, email or text, even when the journalist is just reaching out to set up an interview.

Remember, every interaction with the media should be considered “hot.”

Getting Your Executives Media Trained

Professional communicators know about the importance of expert media training and selecting the right media trainer for your executive team is key.

The media trainer who works with your team should be an insider in the public arena, working directly with newsmakers on a regular basis. They should have deep knowledge of the media landscape and extensive first-hand experience as a news person. Your media trainer should also have the ability to help your team "translate" high-level political & business-speak into strong and memorable soundbites. With his or her help, your executives should learn how to navigate the media waters successfully, delivering key messages to improve and enhance your company’s reputation, without sounding like they are speaking in tongues.

Although communications professionals understand that media training is critical to the success of any business, they sometimes face executives who feel that getting media trained is like going to the dentist (It’s not. We have way more fun and rarely need to use a drill)!

Then there are those executives who first decide they need media training after something bad has happened on their watch. Although media training can certainly help ease some of the pain, the smart move is to be ready before there’s a crisis.

Media training is an ongoing process that should be done periodically. It's like getting into shape; it takes time and dedication to build the muscles needed for effective communication. Training should be seen as an investment in your executive team, not as a band-aid to fix problems caused by lack of preparation.

Holding effective training sessions is not enough; it's the follow-through that counts. Training takes place over a few hours or a full day max but, ideally, participants should continue to practice. Make sure you (or your communications team) organize media training for your executive team well before any media interviews and appearances to make sure they can practice to help build muscle memory and ensure success.

The reality is that it takes repeated practice to get good at media interviews. Just like you would improve your tennis game, public speaking, or baking skills, the more practice and training you have, the better you will become.