[Coral-List] Guana Cay - Conservation v Public Relations
steve tooze
stevetooze1 at hotmail.com
Wed Mar 15 08:14:12 EST 2006
Dear Mike
I'm a journalist myself and I think, if you're not already doing so, you
need to start playing publicity hardball with these developers. I absolutely
accept what Todd was saying about these guys having lots of money. But
people power is always sexier, more sympathetic and makes better headlines
than big business trying to use bullying tactics to get its way.
Plus, as I'm sure you realise, the only reason that these guys are attacking
your reputation and credibility in the local press (and pouring all their
cash into an expensive PR campaign) is because they are scared of you and
think you've got a good chance of thwarting their ugly scheme. So whatever
you're doing now, you're doing right. Keep doing it.
In addition, (sorry Erik if you're about to re-read everything I just put
into an email to you!), if you've got a lawyer in yr midst, get him to fire
off an angry letter to the papers that lazily regurgitated the 'liar' quote
from some corporate press release. Demand an apology and retraction and a
right of reply. Then get every campaigner willing to put pen to paper (or
cursor to email) to send a letter of complaint. Editors and publisher hate
bags of mail from angry readers and you can bet they will think twice before
making that mistake again on this issue.
As an added extra, their journalists/news desks will probably be ordered to
look out for a story that supports yr viewpoint in order to quell the
furious mob. Which you should duly supply - a good one would be to find
someone, preferably a normal working guy like the people on Guana Cay, who
has had their environment/livelihood/property values blighted by a previous
Discovery development elsewhere. Someone sympathetic saying 'For God's sake
don't let these people do to you what they've done to me!'
That should scare the c**p (not sure if that's a word you can use on the
List) out of the very local politicians that these developers are relying on
to push this proposal through - and drum up extra outrage and anti-golf
course feelings in the Bahamas.
Apologies if you're already do all the above (hope it's working if you
are!). Just wanted you to know from a media person's perspective, that it's
not always the cash that buys the headlines. Significant numbers of
passionate people protesting (ie your readers) always make better copy than
big business bleating about its bottom line.
Good luck
Steve Tooze
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