by Josh Sommers
Posted: January 15, 2010 –
As a 1980s kid and avid baseball fan, I was pretty excited one day to open a package of Topps baseball cards and find a Mark Mc-Gwire rookie card. It was clear he was going places. Just too bad he ended up being a cheat and the poster boy for steroids in professional baseball.
McGwire’s public confession this week about his steroid use was completely self-serving. He’s got a new job as a hitting coach with the St. Louis Cardinals. That means coming back into the public eye after remaining largely secluded since his embarrassing 2005 testimony to Congress where he stayed mum on his steroid use.
Getting in front of a crisis
McGwire, now back in the game, can’t hide from the reporters and cameras at this year’s spring training. So McGwire deals with it now, on his terms. From a public relations perspective, that’s a pretty smart move. Giving his story to the Associated Press and Bob Costas rather than giving bits and pieces to reporters hounding him at spring training was a good decision.
Planning a P.R. blitz proactively during crisis is better than playing it reactive. It worked for Letterman, and Tiger Woods showed us what happens when you don’t get in front of a crisis.
On an overall image basis, McGwire’s lack of ability to attain enough votes to make it to Cooperstown will likely remain unchanged — although our culture does have a thing for rooting for prodigal sons.
McGwire’s missed opportunity with this P.R. blitz was not coming completely clean. Blaming his use of steroids on medical purposes is just not believable and hurts the credibility of what he is trying to accomplish. McGwire shattered the single-season home-run record the same year he was juiced. He needs to be real and give full disclosure if he wants the public to forgive him.
It was smart for McGwire to head off the media circus of spring training and finally clear the air. But his justification for steroid use hampered the positive image bounce he could have attained.
Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com. His column appears Friday
