Media Error and Your Response
The media isn’t infallible in its reporting. It’s like any other profession. It can and does make errors. Also like most other professions, it is uncomfortable for the people in it to humbly and remorsefully communicate its errors that hurt people.
So a question for you is this: if the media, no matter how rare an occurrence it might be, reports inaccurately about you and that reporting clearly damages your reputation in a severe manner, what’s your response? Have you thought about it as a possibility?
Many people might say they’d consider legal action.
If you sue, does that solve the problem and fully? You might be surprised.
Will it prove a successful response strategy? How will you live with the reputational damage until, during and after the legal process?
Truth: a legal remedy isn’t always a possibility.
Many people have never thought about the possibility that such an event can happen, no matter how positive they know or believe their reputation to be, and that it can change in an instant.
They also have never understood clearly and precisely of just how difficult, painful, expensive and emotionally overwhelming it could be if this happens to them.
That’s ok, of course. Most individuals or organizations haven’t and don’t think about it because as humans we don’t think about being a patient in the emergency room, until it happens.
It’s important however to realize that almost anyone can, by their own decisions, or because of unsavory people in their orbit, or because life throws strange things at us, become victimized by media reporting that is only partially factually true or a complete misrepresentation.
There’s a term called misreporting. The definition? “To give a false or inaccurate account of (something).”
Regardless of how it happens, when it does, the pain and costs are rapid, intense, painful and can cause shock and trauma.
You can look at it as suffering a reputation injury.
It’s beneficial therefore to consider what you plan to do to take all precautionary measures to protect yourself with as much prevention as you can accomplish, or promptly, wisely and reliably mitigate damages, endure and prove resilient.
You can always make plans and meet professionals today who will help protect you. Then you can identify which particular professional works to understand you and your life and can help you in the way that most concerns you.
Partnering with someone who is ethical, trustworthy, skilled, competent and reliable, is creating an ally.
Michael Toebe is the founder and specialist at Reputation Quality, a firm that helps successful individuals and organizations protect themselves against false accusations and unexpected conflicts and crisis.
