I happen to like New York Congressman Anthony Weiner. It has nothing to do with his politics. I like that Weiner doesn't mind getting into it on TV with people who have a view of the world very different than his. Having heard him speak at a Washington dinner, I found him personable, engaging, self deprecating and hilarious. Maybe not the qualities you look for in a politician, but it makes me happy to see someone with a real personality instead of the blandness that seems to take hold in the Nation's Capital. How can you not like a guy who even makes wiener jokes at his own expense?
Weiner usually has the timing and ear of a good comedian.
But the New York Democrat has become tone deaf on the latest scandal brewing in Washington that some have dubbed "Weinergate". (The press really should stop with the cliché "gate" with every scandal. How about "Weinerhead" instead?)
There are some good lessons from Weiner's actions for public safety officials or anyone else on how not to manage a reputation issue.
For those who don't know, the problem began when a 21-year-old woman from Washington State received a picture from Rep. Weiner's Twitter account. It's a below the belt shot of a man in tight underwear. To describe it further using the theme I started, Oscar Mayer might have similar pictures in ads showing the packaging of its product.
Weiner said originally that his account was hacked. But reporters wanted to know why U.S. Capitol Police weren't called in to investigate the hacking. And it has gone downhill for Anthony Weiner from there. The issue now is Weiner won't say whether or not that's him in the picture.
“This prank has apparently been successful,” Weiner told reporters gathered outside his office. “After almost 11 hours of answering questions, any that anyone wanted to put, today I'm going to have to get back to work doing the job that I'm paid to do.”
Of course, Weiner said on Tuesday that he was “not going to allow this to be what I talk about all week,” only to find himself a day later sitting down for one-on-one interviews with NBC, Fox News, CBS, CNN and ABC. Those interviews did nothing to end the scrutiny, as Weiner refused to say “with certitude” that the photo, which showed an underwear-clad groin, was not of him.
Anthony Weiner should know better. If Weiner did nothing wrong, he's playing a stupid game with the press. And Brad Phillips at mrmediatraining.com thinks Weiner is making it worse by engaging in the same grade school humor I'm doing here. The difference is I can say "with certitude" it isn't mine.
By chastising members of the news media, including calling veteran CNN producer Ted Barrett a "jackass", Weiner is making himself look guilty. It would be one thing to remind reporters, the press and the public that everyone has more important things to do once you've come clean by answering the obvious questions that are lingering.
But Weiner hasn't done that. His explanation as to why he didn't call in police, but is instead having a private firm investigate, isn't very convincing. Also, unless you are a porn star who has that part of the body photographed so many times that you lose count, you know whether or not a specific picture exists of you in your underwear. Again, for the record, there are none of me.
You can't help come to the conclusion this is a man with something to hide. And if that's the case, Weiner should be smart enough to know this is not going to work.
Many of you have heard me say or have read on the blog the following words: get it out; get it right; get it behind you. There really is no other way to deal with bad news and reputation issues.
Egos and pride often make it extremely difficult for someone like Weiner to take this advice. They think they can ride it out by avoiding, spinning, blaming the press and covering up. Very, very few get away with it. And in the digital age, where your reputation can be destroyed at the speed of light, it's almost unheard of.
There may be no better example of a politician doing the wrong thing when it comes to a sex scandal than former Congressman Gary Condit. It was ten-years-ago last month that Condit's name was first connected to a missing woman, Chandra Levy. Instead of coming clean right away about an affair, Condit was willing to allow police, the press and the public to suspect that he was a killer (which he was not). The only thing that got Condit off the front page were the attacks of September 11, 2001.
Until he levels with everyone, Anthony Weiner, who wants to run for mayor of New York, will also likely have to wait for bigger news to come along. Otherwise, expect to see that Oscar Mayer ad running an awful lot in the coming days and months.
Also on STATter911 …
- Memo to Fire Chiefs, Part 2: Weiner comes clean & does what he should have done at the start. – June 6, 2011
- A must see example of leadership & handling the bad news. Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Brian Cummings uncovers dirt & then punishes himself. – October 8, 2011
- Media relations video: EMS crew member tells reporter where to go at fire scene in Coudersport, Pennsylvania. – August 8, 2011
- Quick Takes: September 6, 2011. – September 6, 2011
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From what I've seen on TV and heard on the radio is, is that he just did not come out with a denial statement and then stop talking about the issue and let the investigation run its course, but seemed to keep talking about it and "Muddied the Water's".
He should have followed MSNBC's Ed Schultz's example. Admit "Yes" or "No", and then keep quite, till the investigation is completed.
There really was or is no investigation. Other than the possible hacking, I don’t see a crime that he committed, even if it was a picture of him and he sent it. It would just be bad behavoir on the part of a married Congressman. The only way to deal with that is to admit it and admit it all. Then move on in trying to restore your reputation. Dragging it on for days with half denials and partial answers isn’t going to work.
Forgot, since we're discussing Politicians making errors, let's not let forget;
New Jersey Governor Chris Christy. Don't let him "off the hook" for his using the State Police Helicopter.
While, it was supposed to be part of a "Training Flight" the end landing at his sons baseball game seems to lend this to some other reason for explaination. Then having a State Police Vehicle transport him 300 feet or yards to where his son was located is definitely a mis-use of his State's equipment , especailly when he flew off to his next meeting with Politicial "Operatives" from the State of Iowa.
(Even former Ca. G-A-S only flew in Cal Fire helicopters on Official "Damage Assessment" Flights after Major I-Zone Fires. He daily flew in his own lear jet between Sacramento and Santa Monica).
True, Christy is now going to re-imburse the State for the use of the equipment, this is a person who, is Anti-Union and telling everyone to "Tighten their Belts" and he does this stunt.
By the way, maybe if he walked, he'd loose some weight. I mean what if a NJ FF decides to challenge him to compete in the FF Combat Challenge to prove a point about his knowledge of how hard the job is.
Comon Dave. Give us one more letter of how we shouldn't run from the press and should admit everything up front and all will be well if we just come clean and not deny things. I don't think I quite get it yet…..
Despite the sarcasm, the sad part is so many really don’t get it, especially in public safety. But I am here to help, one post at a time.
Statter
One weiner at a time…
Those two reporters were interrupting him and it simply ticked him off….it would tick anyone off being interrupted. Just because it wasn't the answer the reporters were looking for they feel they can badger the guy? Reporters are always that way. No matter what you give them they always want one last word, one more comment, and badger and spin and take a comment out of context so it fits the way they want to report it. I am not a fan of the press because most of the time they do spin it their own way. I agree, he needs to flat out say yes or no and quit screwing around. However, there is no crime that has been committed here. Hacking into Twitter, Facebook, Hotmail, or any other online media is not a crime. It is not identity theft or theft of services which is the most common misunderstanding. It is an issue with that host company regarding their security procedures and measures, therefore law enforcement would not investigate it, even if he is a state representative. It's a public media account, not a state owned, or government owned email, website, or other electronic media.
As far as the New Jersey Governor….The State Patrol is tasked with his protection 24/7 much like the President of the US. This includes personal family activities such as a baseball game like this. Would it be any different if he used a state owned car to go the game with?? It still is state owned property regardless if it is a helicopter or vehicle. The body guards get paid the same no matter what he is doing. Granted it would be cheaper to travel by car. It is my understanding that the helicopter is new. I don't see a problem with the pilot and crew calling it a training flight because they are getting flight time and they had to practice landing at a "unatural location" (outside of an airport or helipad). A flight like that would be considered training if the Gov. wasn't on board so what is the difference??
Weiner's obfuscation is only going to make the scandal bigger and harder for him to finish. His claim of someone hacking his accounts is pretty hard to swallow. His failure to file a complaint with the US Capitol PD will only stiffen reporters resolve to dig more deeply into this matter. Sending the young woman in question a Weinergram might be in poor taste, but since everyone involved is over 21, it's hardly a criminal matter.
Just another example of how social media can cause a sticky situation, I guess.
I saw an interview with Weiner on TRMS. He stated the woman did not actually recieve the text/picture, and that he and the woman have both admitted that they don't knwo eachother.
Also on the TRMS, they showed how easy it is to hack an account ( Rachels' producer hacked hers in like a minute). Perhaps the most interesting thing is that the story was blown up by one Andrew Brietbart. Yeah, that Brietbart.
Admittedly, I like the Anthony Weiner. he at least has the temerity to stand up for his ideals and not cave like a normal politician.
To the commoner such as myself, the producer & reporter came off looking like a couple of idiots – if they had simply asked a question and then let him answer – I might be inclined to see some of their issue – as it stands though, they felt he was dodging the question, and rather than patiently re-word or ask the question, and leave it to the editing crew later on, the producer decided to hijack the interview with his own line of questioning.