This week's perspective from Bob Reid: I’m gonna miss them. Occupy Toronto has given us so much TD&F fodder over the past month and change, because it had so many dimensions to it, with communications being one of the main ones. So as sad as I am to see this reliable supply of material concluded (for now, anyway), I’m happy to be able to call communications Touchdowns to both sides of the story. From (most) Toronto civic officials, to the Toronto Police Service, to the occupiers themselves, all played it cool and smart – and none fell into the potential minefields that lined the path. The cops kept their cool and kept the dialogue open with the demonstrators, no doubt walking an extra fine line in their first major public order challenge since the G-20. By telling the protesters what they were going to do – and what they were asking of them – the police managed their messages as well as they did the operation itself, to the point that the Toronto Sun’s Joe Warmington quoted Occupy activist Ian Smart as saying “They were outstanding. We must acknowledge it because we would certainly point it out if they had not been.” And, with the inevitable few exceptions, the occupiers overall kept their actions true to their messages – that they were strident in their views but ultimately non-violent and non-confrontational in their tactics. By handling the communications so very well, all sides in this thing emerged able to claim victory and able to move forward with their credibility intact, unhaunted by ugly scenes which could have easily unspooled and been a lasting stain for one group or the other were they not so careful and measured.
Bob Reid has been a journalist and media advisor to a former Ontario Premier. He is now Veritas' principal media coach.
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