Hello PR Methods Students and Welcome to My Blog!
Each week for the next five weeks I will post a blog topic for your review and response. The topics will be current events and you can earn up to 10 points each week that you provide a thoughtful, well-written response.
I'll be looking at grammar, spelling, sentence structure and content. I will also be looking for demonstration of critical thinking, ability to bring additional relevant information to the discussion, and thoughtfulness of your response.
Last night on my way home from class, I was listening to the car radio and was interested to learn that the Detroit City Council unanimously voted yesterday to remove Mayor Kilpatrick from office. Representatives on the Council indicated that they were hoodwinked into supporting Kilpatrick's proposal to award two city policemen a rather large settlement in response to a lawsuit that had been filed against the city. They went on to say that they had no idea that a caveat for the settlement was that the text messages between the mayor and his Chief of Staff could not be made public.
Kilpatrick's attorneys have advised that the City Council does not have the power to remove a mayor from office and that their vote yesterday was illegal and irrelevant.
What a mess!
Can you imagine being the Director of Public Relations for the City of Detroit?
Enlighten me on some interesting aspects of this case and share your thoughts on whether you think Mayor Kilpatrick should resign or remain in office.
Don't forget! The deadline is 5pm on Sunday!
Professor Kinchlow
14 comments:
I think that Mayor Kilpatrick has made a mess and a mockery of the City of Detriot. I want to support him so bad because he is a "Rattler" but I feel that according to the news and all that is being reported about his case everything he has done has been to cover his own butt not to better serve the City of Detriot.
I do believe that Mayor Kilpatrick should accept his wrong doings like they are and take the time to better prepare himself for his up coming trial and Resign before things get worse than they are.
The situation with Mayor Kilpatrick is unfortunate, especially because he is a FAMU graduate. When people who are appointed as leaders fail to behave responsibly and ethically, it becomes a "breach of contract" in a sense. It is not his alleged infedelity that is so disturbing (even though it is not exactly ethical behavior, he's not the first elected official to have affairs)but the idea that he attempted to silence the "whistle-blowers" through bribery. That is illegal. If he had only cheated, then I believe that that is his business. By engaging in illegal activity his business becomes the concern of the people of the city of Detroit. If one would behave in an illegal manner in one instance, who is to say they won't continue to bend/break the law to suit their needs above all others. It is understandable that he would not want such scandalous information to get out, but once he knew it could be made public he should have just accepted that fact, moved on and began some sort of damaged control. Honesty is the best policy in situations like these, and it could have benefited him to just come clean. Instead he tried to hide his indiscretions and in the process was brought up on numerous charges. I believe that the trust he needs to be a successful mayor has been broken and the best solution for him would be to resign and save what little dignity and/or reputation he has, while preparing for his upcoming trial.
I am very sad to see the terrible situation Mayor Kilpatrick is facing. The affair between Kilpatrick and Christine Beatty should not be the focus of discussion in this situation. This does not mean that they should be excused for their misconduct. Kilpatrick is married and Beatty was also married at the time of the alleged affair, so they both were morally wrong. Their private lives are just that – private. Again, their behaviors should not be condoned, but what they do in their private lives is their business. However, lying under oath is a totally different matter. At this point, it appears that a strong case against the two is surfacing. Cell phone records show that the two discussed their decision to fire Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown. Specifically, in cell phone records between Beatty and Kilpatrick, Beatty stated that she was sorry about their decision to fire Gary Brown. The testimonies that Kilpatrick and Beatty gave did not indicate the same message as their cell phone records did. Perjury is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Additionally, the Detroit City Charter calls for any elected officials who are convicted of a felony while in office to be removed. Kilpatrick is no exception to the rule. He should resign rather than go through more humiliation of being removed. The text messages are the determining factor in proving Kilpatrick’s guilt. Kilpatrick’s attorneys have said that the messages are personal and private communications. However, a city legislative act indicates that all electronic communication sent in City equipment should be used in an “honest, ethical, legal manner.” The mayor’s spokesman said that the policy only pertains to city-owned equipment and text messages are exempt because the equipment is leased by a corporation in Mississippi. Kilpatrick seems to have a mountain of problems building up. He should resign so he won’t have to take his family through the media circus.
I think the people in the city of Detroit should decide whether Mayor Kilpatrick should resign. Yes, he has made put the city of Detroit to shame and yes he committed adultery but thats not all Mayor Kilpatrick is guilty of. Before he was even reelected he was accused of stealing over 210,000 from the government to go on a family vacation. He also threaten to lay-off several employees in the city such as police officers and firefighters. My point is , he had committed all of these wrongs doings before he was reelected for his position as Mayor and they are more relevant than his adultery case. Business is strictly business and it is none of our business what the Mayor does outside the office. Now that this case has made such a big deal, for me it raises the question of "is it more important to be ethical than a good employee?". Of all the wrong things that our alumni Mayor Kilpatrick is accused of ,he has did a whole lot of right things and it baffles me that no one wants to focus on those things. According to the Detroit city records he has led a "Detroit City rebirth" were he led the largest road improvement program that the city has ever seen. He also led the construction of new downtown public housing. He has donated money to health care and cleaner water for the city. Mayor Kilpatrick is not all bad! Sure, he has embarrassed himself and his city with infidelity but he has done his job as mayor well and refuses to give up on his city, that has to show something positive about his character!
I am conflicted about the question of whether or not Kwame Kilpatrick should resign. It is obvious that he misappropriated city funds as well put a blemish on the city in the national spotlight. I also am in the opinion that if Kilpatrick does not resign he will continue to cost the city money as well as draw negative attention from the media. With all this being said however, I think it is crucial to take a moment and consider the opinions of the citizens of Detroit.
My goodness, has no one heard the entire story? What are our priorities? Why are we discussing our former rattlers' infidelity when there are so many holes in this story that the media is having a field day. The fact that Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick should be fired based on infidelity is the least of his worries. The stripper from his "lewd parties," Tamara Greene, also known as "Strawberry" was murdered. MURDERED!!!!! This is a homicide people, so as journalist lets at-least mention this issue.
Secondly, the police officers investigating the mayor's misconduct, Harold C. Nelthrope and Gary A. Brown, were both fired. Even the investigator who alleged the theory that the stripper was purposely murdered by a Detroit Police Officer, was removed and transferred out of homicide. Inconsistencies of the number of bullets reported by the police was three verses the Homicide Division report of 18. Files were deleted from homicide computers and reports removed. Sounds like a conspiracy to me!
Not to mention, the affair between both married Kilpatrick and his chief of staff Christine Beatty is not the issue. The problem is that they used Detroit city money to venture off on romantic getaways. And together conspired to fire the Detroit Police Deputy Chief Gary Brown. All blatantly found through text messages. I mean come on, if your gonna be this corrupt, at least don't text about it. And what's even more ironic is that text messages used to be considered private property until Mayor Kilpatrick himself re-authorized during his first term in office that all electronic communication sent through city equipment was considered not private. Wow, if only Kilpatrick had foreseen how his own decision would one day work against him.
However, because money makes the world go round, Kwame Kilpatrick most defiantly needs to resign as the Mayor of Detroit. His misconduct and multiple scandals have cost the city of Detroit millions of dollars. Yes people this is all about the all mighty dollar, and frankly Kilpatrick is doing nothing but wasting city dollar bills ya'll. The fired police officers won $8.4 million dollars. Even the strippers family sued the city and won a settlement.
"What a Mess" is an understatement. If I were Mayor Kilpatrick's director of public relations, I would remind him of the cardinal rule to Never Lie! Along with the 10 commandment, his marriage vows, and the laws of obstruction of justice. Once more I say, let's stick to the important issue at hand and not just his failed marriage. After all, there are other significant issues that indict Kilpatrick worth discussing.
At this point, the issue is not about how much right or wrong Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has done for the city of Detroit. It is now important to take into consideration the significance this situation has had on the Detroit residents’ perception of Mayor Kilpatrick.
Like the saying goes, “Business is never personal.” This is not a personal attack on Mayor Kilpatrick for not being faithful to his wife. Mayor Kilpatrick used city equipment to send the messages to Christine Beatty, therefore making this a public issue. Covering up his actions was not a wise decision. As a professional, Mayor Kilpatrick should know the rules of ethics and in this situation his actions were unethical. Because of the severity of this situation, Mayor Kilpatrick should have made it his responsibility to admit to the city of Detroit that he had made a mistake. Trust is hard to gain back and for some people trust is never restored. Mayor Kilpatrick has lost the trust of the city of Detroit.
Currently, Mayor Kilpatrick has no credibility with the city of Detroit; remaining in office should not even be a choice at this time. The best thing for Mayor Kilpatrick to do now is resign and begin developing a plan to regain his credibility with the city of Detroit. Being removed will not only make matters worse, but it will show the city of Detroit that Mayor Kilpatrick has not accepted the impact of his actions and that he does not feel his actions deserve consequences.
I think Mayor Kilpatrick should resign, because he has caused much shame to the city of Detroit, FAMU Alumni, and himself. At this point, he is almost considered a joke because of all the corruption that he has caused. It reminds me of Marion Barry who got caught smoking crack and still was re-elected for another term. With all the hype surrounding the settlement and affair going on while he was working I do not see how he has the time to dedicate to really being the mayor.
I agree with my fellow classmates and I believe that he should accept his wrong doings and consequences for his actions. At first, I believed that his affair should not be taken into consideration because that is his private life. Yet, his affair has had a major impact on everything gone wrong in this situation. Police officers were fired because they would not keep his secret. Also, he misappropriated funds by using his work-messaging device to communicate with his mistress.
He has been referred to in Detroit newspapers as a pimp. That is a bad image of the people of Detroit and all that people associate him with. Yes, I am sure he is not all bad but the good that he has done I’m sure another mayor could do without all the drama.
Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick should address the public and let them know his stand on the situation. He should tell them that the accusation about him tricking the Detroit City Council into handsomely rewarding two police officers after a lawsuit against the city is ludicrous and very embarrassing. On the issue of his love affair with his Chief of Staff, he should tell them that he and his family have put the issue behind them and plan on moving forward.
He should also gather his internal publics to help him put together a great defense on his behalf about the lawsuit situation as well as the love affair speculations. Kilpatrick needs to decide if he wants to face the people who desperately want to get rid of him with the truth, reminding them of his accomplishments as Detroit’s mayor, or if he should just resign from being mayor and plead his case on perjury charges to prove him as being an innocent man.
I think that situation that Mayor Kilpatrick is in is unfortunate. I don't want to contribute race into the blog but I feel that him being a black male he should have known better; especially a black male in his position.
He just has to suffer the consequences of his actions and deal with it the best of his ability. Purgery a very serious crime and I hope that things work out well for him.
He's just in a very tough spot right now with all the allegations against him and I'm sure he's not a dumb man, hopefully he will be able to get himself out of this without to much damage tarnishing his name.
"He handled his assignments with class, integrity. He really represents the best of his family, our state and our country. It's going to be hard to replace Scott." ___President George W. Bush
These kind words were referring to former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. Considering McClellan’s uncovering of the lies and deception of the Bush administration, President Bush’s comments were surely sugar glazed. There is no doubt that the Bush administration has left American citizens in the dark on certain situations, especially pertaining to war.
McClellan said, “I fell far short of living up to the kind of public servant I wanted to be.” He is absolutely correct, but was he not just doing what he was told to do? At Florida A&M University we are taught the importance of morals and ethics. Intertwined, morals are what make up the ethics of a company. We are trained to read them, know them, understand and practice those ethics in the correct way. As high of a power that the US government has, government officials should not only apply their code of ethics in their work, but also live by the ethics they are expected to perform.
McClellan writing a book about the trickery of the government towards the public may serve as a service to the people, but may be damaging for others. By others I mean the CIA agents whose identities are disclosed for safety purposes. Not every assignment given to US agents or soldiers is misleading just because it is disclosed to the public. Many times it is better not to tell certain things to people (especially a mass audience) because they may not understand the significance of why the action is or is not done. They also may put the lives of others in jeopardy who are trying to resolve that certain situation.
When the disclosed information is harmful and knowingly dishonest to the public, then it is a fault on the person(s) withholding the information and responsible for the actions taken. No government or president is perfect, but the Bush administration as well as other US government officials should know better when a situation arises that is damaging to another person or people.
McClellan would have been even more honorable if he would have simply given up his position as the White House Press Secretary the first time he was told to lie, especially if there was no good reason to. With the status and power that these people have, there should always be complete honesty in every word spoken. If the public does not like it, then is the time to pull out public relations methods by having a planned process, two-way communication, programs of action, influencing the public’s opinion and using honest successful management functions.
Oprah Winfrey: The Economy’s Golden Goose
Surely everything Oprah Winfrey touches turns into gold. Whether it stays gold is the question that now seems to be a weight on many people’s minds. Whenever her favorite book, candy, beauty product, new gadget or any other items of her interests are presented to the public, the organizations and companies who produce the products or services receive an immediate increase in sales. If Oprah put a dollar in her chair every time she sat down and said it brought her wealth, George Washington’s face would see more butts than the seats in a New York City subway.
Why have the ratings of the Oprah Winfrey Show decreased?
Oprah’s stand on certain issues is sometimes firmer than the Bush administration’s belief of there being weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Like her many other rival talk show gurus, Oprah acts like a presiding judge in the court of what’s good and what’s bad.
What’s Beef?
Oprah’s decrease in ratings may have something to do with all of the beef she has had with certain people some years back, especially with the Texas Beef Group (a group of Texas cattle ranchers) when mad cow disease plagued the United States. Beef companies instantly accused Oprah when the sales of beef suddenly decreased. They never thought that the decrease may have come from the certified news media informing the public about sickness from the meats. Instead, since Oprah is the female pope of network television, she was the blame of why people took a break from cows. She was found not guilty for food defamation, but she was found guilty for being an instigator by others.
It is true that the majority of Oprah’s viewers are (white) women. Her topics may not always be of importance to most ethnic communities. If they are, then there might not be enough time in Oprah disciples’ days to sit and enjoy her show because of more women obtaining jobs to support their families and to help pay their mortgages.
Until Oprah spreads financial support to all of her absent working viewers, she can start gaining her viewers back if she brightened up her show. Her show is a little dull. It is put together for middle-aged and older women, but they are not the only people who look at television. Though they may be her target audience, because of ratings Oprah should consider catering to all races of young adults and men. If she wants to know what they want to see, then she should hold surveys and get feed back from potential viewers.
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