Touchdown: Some auto sector players keep customers in focus amid tough times

Veritas Team Huddle Compiled By Marnie Campbell

As Canadians continue to find ways to stretch their hard-earned dollar, more and more and are having to say 'no' to those special indulgences. So I guess we have to ask, is a car considered an indulgence now? The proof is in the pudding with the ongoing struggle the automotive industry is currently dealing with. Despite these challenges however, there are some industry players who are stepping up to the challenge by continuing to show support and appreciation to their customers. And because of this, the Veritas team awards a Touchdown to those in the industry who aren't forgetting their customers, despite everything that's going on. For example, something as simple as reliable customer relations and continued quality service will keep loyal customers coming back. Perhaps just for a tune-up instead of a trade-up for the time being, but they'll come back. Again and again and eventually ... to buy. The "Pimp My Ride" phenomenon is growing as more and more people are looking to improve what they already have instead of starting new. Just like home owners leaning towards renovating and updating what they've got, car owners are doing the same. As a result, smart industry players are starting to see this as a chance to promote their businesses and services instead of focusing on the bigger issue of a decline in sales. Now is the time to create a connection with the consumer in a way that makes them feel wanted, even if they aren't in pursuit for something brand new. Connect with clients and offer cost-effective solutions to maintain what they may already have. There are a few that are heading in that direction, but the more industry players who do, the smoother the ride will be ... for everyone.

Touchdown: Obama gives Arab network first TV interview

So often it's not only what you say, but where and how you say it that can send a very strong message. Barack Obama did just that by opting to give his first sit-down television interview as President to a journalist with the Al-Arabiya network. In his inaugural address, Obama spoke directly to the Muslim world, and promised a new extension of the United States' hand. Following that up with a one-on-one interview with Arab television reinforced that message and commitment in the strongest possible terms. And, in the interview itself, Obama chose to highlight the fact that members of his own family are Muslim, and that his personal experience living in the world's most populous Muslim nation (where he spent some of his boyhood years) helps give him some direct insight on the world of Islam. Reaction from throughout the Muslim world was swift and positive, with many saying they now have a different view of the United States with Obama in charge. Message sent, message received, Touchdown called on the play.

Touchdown: Ignatieff scores with sound bite

Budgets are complicated business. Lots of math. Ditto for matters of minority government parliamentary procedure, so when the two come together as they did this week in Ottawa, it's beyond byzantine. The best friend of any communicator in complex situations is an effective sound bite that crystallizes the whole enchilada into an easy to understand line or two. All eyes were on Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff, awaiting word as to his party's next move in the wake of the Harper government's big spending, big deficit stimulus-oriented budget. Would the Liberals follow the NDP and Bloc Quebecois and vote against the budget? Would that lead to an election? Would the coalition of the opposition parties hold? What would it take for the Liberals to support the budget, thus keeping the Conservatives in power for the foreseeable future, anyway? So many questions, so many issues, so much potential for complicated answers that would leave many Canadians scratching their heads. "We are putting this government on probation," was Ignatieff's response, and it proved to be THE quote which was picked up by broadcast and print reporters alike, and pasted into headlines far and wide. "We will be watching like hawks to make sure that the investments Canadians need actually reach them," he followed, and later clarified that he is not giving Harper a green light, declaring it instead "a flashing yellow light" and warning the PM that he should "proceed with extreme caution." Regardless of what one may think about the content of the budget and the politics of Ignatieff's reaction, he employed a range of good quotable quotes which took a complicated situation and spelled it out succinctly and effectively - and that's a communications Touchdown.

Fumble: Senators owner blows up

One of the golden rules we talk about when media training is about being aware of never parroting back negative words or phrases. You need to be watchful and recognize them as they come at you in an interview. This week, Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk was asked a typical hockey question losing teams get peppered with at this time in the NHL season: shouldn't you just blow up the team, trade your top players for draft picks and begin a rebuilding process? It's standard sports jargon. But Melnyk latched onto the negative phrase and parroted it back. "Anybody that says we should blow up this organization should get their own bomb and go blow themselves up, okay?" he shot back. By using the phrase, Melnyk took ownership of it. The question didn't appear in news reports, only his answer, like the boldfaced Star headline "Volatile Melnyk says critics can 'blow themselves up.'" Sadly, Melnyk's use of the negative obscured an otherwise good answer he provided, saying the Senators team "needs fine-tuning, it needs some tweaking, it needs a player here, a player there, a few good bounces and that's it." The lesson is: resist the temptation to reflect back a negative phrase and stick to your real answer. Use your own words.

Touchdown: Leafs coach in the weeds

Sticking to the sports theme, you have to hand it to one of the best communicators in hockey, Toronto Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson. Following an embarrassing 6-1 loss in Minnesota this week, Wilson was asked his reaction. "Right now, it is a garden full of weeds and I need to pick some weeds," he remarked. The Touchdown is for the great "word picture" Wilson painted. After several losses this season Wilson has been repeatedly forced to comment on his team's sub-par play. As a communicator, it can be challenging to keep giving the same answer over and over without getting exasperated and making a big mistake (see "Senators owner" below). One way to do it is to come up with an analogy or an image, the way Wilson did with this quote. It also opened the door for the Toronto Star sports section to run a clever story comparing Leaf players to several species of garden weeds, such as milkweed, ragweed and goldenrod. The image of a coach weeding out players unwilling to give 100 per cent also sent the message to Leaf fans that Wilson is committed to winning. It worked.

Touchdown: PETA wins by losing

You've got to admit that PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) knows how to generate buzz. A TV ad PETA sought to purchase for $3 million from NBC for Sunday's Super Bowl was rejected by the network for being too sexy. It features a number of models really enjoying vegetables and was titled "Veggie Love." The ad (at www.peta.org) probably does violate NBC's standards. But not only did PETA save the $3 million ad cost, it generated many millions more worth of earned media coverage, including millions of hits on the ad online, due to the controversy the NBC rejection caused. Almost every online news site is featuring a streaming version of the ad (as are many blogs) and the story generated headlines and coverage worldwide, at a time when Super Bowl ads are traditionally one of the key non-sports-related stories leading to the NFL championship game. Some media criticized PETA for demeaning women ("I guess they care more about animals than about women," one Seattle Post-Intelligencer reporter wrote). But PETA has staked out that territory since its "I'd rather go naked than wear fur" ads, so this was a consistent strategy. While risky, it also turned out to be a winning one.

Touchdown: The Games are coming regardless

Veritas Team Huddle Compiled By Caroline Murphy

A global event that brings together people from every corner of the world, countries spend copious amounts of money and effort in trying to secure the right to host the Olympic Games. When Vancouver won the coveted honour for 2010 there was much celebration, but now with the economic downturn and major 2010 sponsors like GM and Nortel on shaky financial ground, the luster of the Games has faded. That’s why the Veritas team huddle has awarded the Vancouver organizing committee (VANOC) a touchdown. The truth is, there is nothing they can do about the state of the global economy and there was no way to predict this would happen when they were first awarded the rights. Now with the possibility of losing some serious sponsorship dollars and the government pouring money into the funding behind the athlete’s village, while people struggle to stay afloat amidst massive cutbacks and layoffs, the reality is, the Games must go on. VANOC scored this week with transparency and consistent communications during a very difficult time. A press release reinforced that they are in a positive financial position and they will be making the revised budget public in just a few days. Overall, the team felt that they are making the best of a bad situation, sometimes you can still score in the game of communications even if the story itself isn’t a good one to tell.

Fumble: Oh Caroline!

You know, it’s painful for me, you know, having grown up in the 1960s, you know, and, been influenced by, you know, by political icons, you know, like Pierre Trudeau and John F. Kennedy, to, you know, now Fumble Kennedy’s daughter, you know, Caroline Kennedy, who, you know, they’re calling “The Valley Girl of Camelot.” Lets get serious for a minute. The tortured interviews Caroline Kennedy conducted while promoting her candidacy to be appointed New York Senator to replace Hillary Clinton were cringe-worthy. Many said she made Sarah Palin appear intellectual. And essentially these bad interviews destroyed Kennedy’s chances, to the point where she pulled out this week (yes, there were also issues about her voting record, political donations and taxes). Consider this answer to a media question about whether President George W. Bush’s tax cuts should be repealed by the new administration: “Well, you know, that’s something, obviously, that, you know, in principle and in the campaign, you know, I think that, um, the tax cuts, you know, were expiring and needed to be repealed,” she said. As a former reporter, I can tell you the media will “clean up” someone’s quote if there are just a few problems with it. It’s sort of an unwritten rule. But when it’s this bad, media often go entirely the other way and make the story all about the speaking style. For example, Britain’s The Guardian newspaper ran a headline: “Caroline Kennedy: the woman who y’knowed too much.” And of course TV and radio clips never lie. It’s a great lesson about the value of preparing yourself for media interviews and taking media training, even refreshers or sessions focused entirely on your specific announcement, to practice being drilled on the tough questions and delivering your key messages. When the klieg lights shine on you, will you be prepared?

Touchdown: Minister Gerretsen sets the bar high

One of the communications lessons we almost never discuss is about passion. To be the best communicator you can be, you really need to believe in what you’re saying, to demonstrate enthusiasm and “gut” emotions about your argument, particularly when you are promoting a cause or program. This week, Stewardship Ontario launched a program to help recycle household hazardous waste such as paint cans, batteries, fertilizer containers and so forth. It’s called Do What You Can (www.dowhatyoucan.ca). Stewardship Ontario and its team led by CEO Gemma Zecchini did an outstanding job organizing a launch event held Thursday at Mississauga’s Fewster Community Recycling Centre and they earned their own Touchdown. But the person responsible for the provincial agency, Environment Minister John Gerretsen, deserves to be singled out here for the numerous television, radio and print interviews and media scrums he conducted, and for his excellent speech at the launch event, carried live on CP24. What came across in every interview was Minister Gerretsen’s passion for our environment. He really feels it. The media often gets the impression that some communicators are “going through the motions,” even if they’re not – for some it may just be caused by nervousness or lack of preparation. But Minister Gerretsen has been committed to the environment his entire career. Since taking over the portfolio (he formerly served as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing), the Kingston native’s deep commitment to improving our environment now and for future generations has illuminated many worthy programs run by his ministry. I don’t need to get into specifics of what Minister Gerretsen said because the lesson here is about how his passion for the subject elevated every interview he did. He spoke with a gut emotion that made it easy for consumers to connect to his message. It’s a good lesson for all of us.

Touchdown: Conservatives release deficit projections

It used to be a huge deal if any aspect of a federal budget leaked to the media ahead of time, but in recent years it has become a matter of course for governments to reveal key aspects of the coming fiscal plan before its official unveiling. But I can’t recall a government proactively releasing its bottom line figures in advance of budget day, and that’s exactly what the Harper government did yesterday, stating for the record that Canada will go $34 billion into the red in the new fiscal year, and another $30 billion in 2010. Why the heck would they leak their own colossal deficit plans? Answer: to give the media, pundits, opposition and the public time to digest the big numbers now, so that on budget day they will be old news and the focus can shift to the mechanics of the budget plan and its pricey stimulus measures. Rather than have the actual budget coverage dominated by the big red ink figures, we’ll all be more interested in examining the specific stimulus spending and tax break measures themselves. It’s a smart strategy, and I bet it works.

Touchdown: Obama gets busy

I thought Global TV’s Jacques Bourbeau hit it on the head when he remarked that though it has only been a few days since President Obama was inaugurated, he has been moving so quickly that it already feels like George Bush was quite a long time ago. I always watch for the communications in action which follows high profile events like a presidential inauguration or a Speech from the Throne here in Canada – what messages are you sending when the real work gets underway? Obama knew that he had to be seen to be taking the reins of power quickly, and to demonstrate that he will deliver on the message of change he tub-thumped about every day on the long campaign trail. And I believe he did just that, in his first couple of days on the job. Signing Executive Orders to close the Guantanamo Bay Prison and to end the use of torture spoke loudly and clearly about his follow-through. Ditto for his comments following the official introduction of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State when he said, “let there be no doubt about America's commitment to lead. We can no longer afford drift, and we can no longer afford delay, nor can we cede ground to those who seek destruction. A new era of American leadership is at hand, and the hard work has just begun." All of it was a clear statement of bringing new approaches to the challenges facing his nation, and a clean break from the policies of the past.

Touchdown: Obama’s sober speech

I’m sure someday, somehow, Barack Obama will make a communications play that deserves to be called a Fumble. But this is not that day … or week. The 44th President of the United States wasted no time in getting down to doing what he does so well, including the first order of business for anyone who gets the job – giving the inaugural address. Many commentators say they were disappointed by Obama’s big speech, saying it failed to truly take flight and leave us with quotations for the ages a la JFK’s “ask not what your country can do for you …” or Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream.” I agree that it was a much more sober address than we were expecting, one which went easy on the lofty and lyrical, and more toward the stark and specific. He actually touched on some pretty clear policy areas. But that choice of tone and content was in itself a powerful communications message: we are in difficult times, more of the same lies ahead, and we will have to work very hard to get out of the mess we’re in – but rest assured, we’ll get there. And as for enduring lines, I thought there were a few: “Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.” And “the time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.” Or how about “this is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.” Powerful stuff. Godspeed, Mr. President.

Fumble: A failed opportunity for CAW

Veritas Team Huddle Compiled By Matthew Naftolin

Great leadership comes from understanding a situation from all angles and knowing how to communicate your message accordingly. Following a bailout by the U.S., the federal and Ontario governments are in the midst of proposing conditions to lend $4 billion to General Motors and Chrysler. Upon learning of a temporary strike-ban provision that was attached to the U.S. bailout, Ken Lewenza, president of Canadian Auto Workers Union, vowed that he would never take part in the deal if a similar condition were attached in Canada. “We won’t accept it, simple as that.” It's the view of the Veritas team that this was a Fumble, because as a union leader, Lewenza should not have provided such a closed-minded response, especially when so many auto workers are at risk of losing their jobs. It's our view that, while acknowledging the larger issue at hand, Lewenza could have expressed his concerns about a strike-ban in a manner that was not so all-or-nothing. Strong communicators can make their position clear without painting themselves into a corner while they're at it.

Touchdown: "The Best Job in the World"

How do you earn media attention for an island off the coast of Australia in the name of boosting tourism? Set up a brilliant online competition for what you cleverly dub "the best job in the world." Specifically, it's to live, all expenses paid, on Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef area for six months, enjoy yourself, and blog about your adventures. Oh, and it pays a hundred grand U.S. as well. The call for applications was met with over a million hits to the website and a crashed server - along with worldwide media coverage including all the major networks here in Canada, big splashes in the dailies, and endless radio chatter. As a piece of marketing communications, it was flawless. Oh, and if the position's still available, I'm a pretty decent writer myself ...

Punt: Toronto Hydro on electrocuted dog

I have two dogs, so this already-big story resonated especially strongly with me. A Toronto man watched his dog die in front of him after the poor pooch stepped on an electrified metal plate while out for a walk. "Stray voltage" is the term used to describe what happens when utility covers or poles or what have you suddenly become unintended conductors of electricity. It was a terrible incident all on its own, but a doubly difficult one for Toronto Hydro, as it was the second such canine fatality on the same street in two months. Hydro spokesman Blair Peberdy responded with the right expressions of sympathy and regret, coupled with details of a city-wide sweep launched by the utility to make sure there aren't similar problems anywhere else. It was pretty good crisis communications, but what I thought was missing was any quantification of the scope of the problem. I live across town, but should I fear for my dogs' lives? All we heard was that the same thing had happened before on the same street, and that Toronto Hydro is checking to see how widespread it might be. Is this not, surely, a very rare occurrence? Are there any stats to reassure the public that they need not fear every manhole cover in their neighbourhood? If there are, I didn't see them ...

Touchdown: Automakers fuelled up

A good communications tactic effectively executive was on display this week, courtesy of the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers of Canada, which represents 13 companies including Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Mazda, Mercedes Benz and BMW. Wanting to make a point about the federal government’s need to better regulate the quality of gas produced by oil companies as part of a holistic approach to improving our environment, the group leveraged a report it commissioned by the respected Alberta-based Pembina Institute. “We really need a different approach from the government to get where we want to go,” association president David Adams was quoted as saying in a story by the Toronto Star’s veteran automotive industry beat writer Tony Van Alphen. As Tony pointed out, automakers have complained for years that Ottawa has regulated the vehicle technology side without forcing the oil companies to adequately clean up so-called dirty gasoline supplies. So how to make the point fresh and gain some media attention to the issue at a time when the federal Conservative government is so clearly in a policy-making sprint? By producing the Pembina report there was a fresh angle, a fresh perspective to offer the media. It’s a lesson well-learned about going outside your organization to seek expert advice from third parties and leveraging those partnerships and expertise to deliver your message in a timely fashion.

Touchdown: Humble Mickey bounces back

It was a much more humble Mickey Rourke who accepted the best actor Golden Globe Award for his remarkable performance in the lead role in “The Wrestler,” beating out some heavy-duty competition. And it’s a more modest Rourke than we’ve ever seen doing interviews in advance of the Academy Awards, where many eyes will be on him in the same category. A contrite Rourke told CNN that he only had himself to blame for the myriad troubles he faced the last 20 years. “You lose your house, your wife, your career, your everything at one time,” he said. “You’ve got to look in the mirror and go ‘It's your fault.’” He could have gone the other way, with a ‘they done me wrong’ narrative that would have reeked of the old, egotistical, unreliable and self-destructive Rourke. But instead, he used his rebound to the podium of fame to demonstrate a more mature outlook. Nor was Rourke afraid to be brutally honest about his dark days. “Seeing your entourage leaving with everything they can carry,” he said. “And you're standing there in the dark with your thumb up your ass.” People sometimes forget that Rourke was one of the last actors to train with the legendary Lee Strasberg at the Actor's Studio in New York with the likes of Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and Harvey Keitel. If you’ve never seen Rourke in the 1987 Barbet Schroeder movie “Barfly” with Faye Dunaway, you’ve missed one of the darker classics ever. Meantime, the media is giving Rourke the benefit of the doubt about his comeback, in fact some are openly cheering it on, because the man has been so honest and straightforward in his communications approach.

Fumble: York U closes the door on students

Veritas Team Huddle Compiled By Jason MacDonald

Experience tells us that management is almost always perceived as the bad guy in a labour dispute. That said, media coverage of the dispute between York University and one of its unions reminds us that sometimes small gestures can go a long way toward earning management some good will. This week, the Toronto Star reported that some York students held a press conference to present both sides in the dispute with a petition signed by more than 4,000 students. A union representative picked up a copy but the university declined to receive it. The Star also reports that a group of about 20 students have camped out in front of the university president’s office in the hope that he’ll meet with them to discuss the strike. Again, he’s declined their request. The message this lack of communication sends students is the university doesn’t care about how the strike has disrupted their lives. We understand that communicating during a labour dispute can be tricky. But that shouldn’t prevent you from talking with the people who are, ultimately, your customers. We counsel our clients to remember that effective communications requires that you understand your audience and their needs. The Veritas Team felt that, in this case, that means demonstrating that the university management is accessible and that they empathize with the plight of the students. They could do that by welcoming them in and listening, lest their actions to date continue to reinforce what are already negative optics.

Touchdown: Economist reminds us all of power of perception

Is it at all surprising that the confidence of Canadians in the economy is at record lows, given the steady diet of economic meltdown stories we are bombarded by in the media every day? Glenn Hodgson, chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada, thinks not. “If (the media) keep saying the sky is falling, well, people think the sky is falling... It's why media exists, we all want to know what is happening out there. The question is whether the bad news is getting amplified?" Veteran business reporter Brenda Bouw wrote the story quoting Hodgson, and which goes on to say there is already evidence that things may not be quite as bad as they appear. I say both deserve a Touchdown for reminding all of us of the power of perception, driven by relentless media focus. There is a huge bandwagon effect at play when virtually every media outlet puts one issue front and centre. It can very easily skew broader public perception to a place which is quite far from the actual reality. It can also offer communications opportunities to anyone with a message which connects to that overwhelming story. And, inevitably, just as all economic cycles eventually reverse, so too do media appetites. There comes that point of what I call “editor fatigue,” where a media consensus concludes that the story has been done to death – and suddenly the counter-story is in vogue. It’s only a matter of time before headlines like “Is the worst now over?” and “Cause for optimism” begin to rule the day. Some may find all of this rather basic and obvious, but I submit that it is a timely reminder that we find ourselves in the midst of one of these periods, and savvy communicators will be able to leverage it (at either or both ends) if they play their cards wisely.

Touchdown: Obama paints strong but stark picture

A new year, and a first Touchdown for Barack Obama. The U.S. President-Elect gave a high profile speech – his first post-campaign oratory – yesterday, in which he detailed his proposed stimulus package for the American economy, and used his strong communications skill to underline his call for urgent action by Congress. Obama painted some very clear – and very stark – pictures of how dire the economic situation remains, and how high the stakes are on doing the right thing and doing it quickly. “Now, I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. Our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future. And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and our standing in the world. In short, a bad situation could become dramatically worse,” he said. It’s a classic case of the doomsday scenario, designed to hammer home a message and inspire action. Obama also nicely coupled the scary stuff with some additional comments consistent with his top campaign message, about the need to change the way things are done in Washington.

Fumble: Caisse CEO steps down

There’s an important lesson in this story that applies not just to how to handle crisis communications but also about how to keep your communications messages focused. The Globe and Mail had a story this week titled “Caisse engulfed by political battle” about the resignation of the Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec CEO. It alleged that four months ago, the Quebec government of Premier Jean Charest never wanted CEO Richard Guay appointed in the first place and had fought the Caisse board behind the scenes for a different candidate. These questions were put to the chair of the board of Canada’s largest pension fund manager, Pierre Brunet, by the Globe. He responded in an interview that Guay’s appointment was unanimous and that any discussions held about other candidates needed to remain confidential – essentially confirming the Globe’s ‘sources-say’ story. “At the time… Richard Guay was the candidate and it was a unanimous board decision,” Brunet told the Globe. The problem with this is the line “at the time.” It should never have been addressed at all by Brunet. The Caisse is well past that time now. It needed to address the current financial crisis and current facts about how it intends to manage the giant fund in Guay’s absence, not speculate about what happened four months ago in some smoky political backroom. It’s easy to be tricked into going back in time and speculating about what could have or should have happened, or to speculate in future tense about what may happen down the road. Don’t do it. Stay in the ‘here and now’ and remain focused solely on the facts before you today, as you know them.

Touchdown: ‘Recessionista’ now in style

In the extremely unlikely event you missed it over the holidays, circumstances are dire for many businesses in the retail industry. The recession has caused some retailers to file for bankruptcy, while others look for creative ways to continue to attract shoppers. So it was Touchdown-worthy this week to see a Reuters news story picked up by the Globe and Mail and many other outlets based on a press release put out by the British department store chain Debenhams. The company talked about attracting a new breed of shopper – the “recessionista” – who is trading down from top end to more affordable luxury goods, such as the Designers at Debenhams range, which saw a double-digit sales jump. The campaign, coupled with aggressive December pre-Boxing Day sales prices, saw Debenhams suffer only modest sales declines (and beat its forecasts) compared to other major British retailers, and as a result its share price was up by 30 per cent. Debenhams deputy chief executive Michael Sharp said: “The market is incredibly tough but there are always going to be winners and losers. We are in the winners’ camp.” The communications lesson is that in troubled times, it can be about calling a spade a spade and then making your case for why you offer consumers a unique opportunity.

Touchdown: Sanjay’s silence is golden

It’s not often at TD&F that we award a communications Touchdown to someone who says absolutely nothing on the issue at hand. But we are this week. Dr. Sanjay Gupta even declined comment to one of his employers, CNN, about reports that President-elect Barack Obama had offered him the job of U.S. Surgeon General. And by declining, Gupta illustrated a good communications lesson for 2009, that sometimes less is more. When you’re being considered for an honour or a prestigious posting, it’s not unusual for the media to get wind of it in advance. What gums up the process for so many potential nominees is when they decide to talk about it. There is a time to speak and a time to remain silent. Gupta knows what time it is. In addition, what was great about the communications play is that important information about Gupta, 39, a practicing neurosurgeon at two Atlanta-area hospitals, a professor of neurosurgery at Emory University School of Medicine, CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent and a Time magazine columnist, did actually get out and strengthened his credentials to be Surgeon General. My favourite was the anecdote about how he was imbedded as a CNN reporter with U.S. Navy medics in Iraq, when someone who was wounded needed critical life-saving brain surgery that the medics were unqualified to perform. Imagine them looking around and one says to the other: “What about having the CNN reporter do it?” Gupta performed brain surgery in Iraq, not once, but five times while on assignment for CNN, in one case to save the life of a 2-year-old Iraqi boy. Incredible.