Thursday, September 18, 2008

When Your Spokesperson Becomes the News


After acknowledging to the media that a preliminary investigation showed the Metrolink engineer ran a red light before crashing into a freight train last week, Metrolink spokeswoman Denise Tyrrell -- who got permission from the organization's chief executive to share that information -- has become part of the story.

Tyrrell, subjected to criticism from Metrolink leaders and others for sharing too much information too soon, resigned. CEO David Solow said he was "wrong" to give her permission to be frank with the press. And yet, companies are urged to tell the truth and tell it soon when there's a crisis. Isn't this what Tyrell did?

What would you have done in her shoes? And why?

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