In January, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) will be moving away from using official fact checkers to the X (formerly Twitter) model of “community notes”.
Coupled with a second Trump term in office, the issue of misinformation, and “fake news” is back with a bang. We are entering a time where it is becoming harder to distinguish fact from fiction, making it easier to tarnish reputations with minimal effort or evidence.
This has become a real problem when corporates – or individuals – face baseless accusations and the checks and balances which normally prevent such accusations from being published are slowly weakened. In today’s world, reputation is everything and once lost, it is hard to rebuild.
Ultimately, public trust is eroded in two ways – first, if accusations appear on social media but not in mainstream media, the public - who have little sympathy for large companies – may assume that the mainstream media has been paid off and is unreliable.
In reality, the journalists – who are held to a high standard and code of ethics – likely investigated the accusation and discovered it is untrue and therefore not worth writing about.
The second way is when bad actors find it useful to muddy the waters by intentionally spreading misinformation. If there is an abundance of misinformation spread from different voices, when a real reputational issue arises, it is hard to distinguish it from other potential misinformation and this allows for real issues to be brushed away as “fake news” when in fact they are very real.
As AI becomes more sophisticated, there is growing concern it could manipulate public perception even further. For now, it is still relatively easy to spot an AI-generated video or a “deep fake”, although voice recordings are becoming harder to detect.
The concern would be that any number of compromising scenarios could be fabricated using AI. And because “seeing is (still) believing”, it will be very hard to defend someone’s reputation if there is video or audio “evidence” of an indiscretion.
In PR in general but reputation and crisis management in particular, the use of AI to help deal with an issue has been patchy at best.
For example, during a crisis, public statements must show a level of authenticity and transparency that an AI-text generator simply cannot reach.
I have seen countless companies and high-ranking public figures heavily criticised for publishing a statement which the public immediately spots as AI-generated. This suggests that the entity at fault could not even be bothered to write a genuine apology,further eroding public trust.
Organisations and individual’s alike ought to take a proactive approach to reputation management in an increasingly distrustful and easy to manipulate world. The best way to manage a crisis is to prevent it from occurring.
Regular reputational risk assessments and internal reviews are essential to ensure that senior management is not missing anything or being misled.
Working with experts to develop a well-defined crisis management plan with proper communication protocols and a crisis management team that can be quickly activated is highly recommended.
Similarly, consistently monitoring your brand mentions across various platforms enables early detection of potential issues. It is vital that you work with professionals who understand the local landscape as nuances could be easily overlooked if your advisors lack a local presence.
It is also crucial for organisations and individuals to build positive stakeholder relationships. While mapping out who your stakeholders are is a very important step.
Many organisations overlook their own employees, failing to communicate with them during a crisis. Keeping your stakeholders well-informed will act as a buffer during tough times and help maintain trust.
It is rarely advisable that you take the “ostrich approach” of burying your head in the sand during a crisis. Silence is often interpreted as an admission of guilt, and delaying a response – whether the allegations are true or not – allows speculation to grow.
If you are letting others speak for you, they are bound to get the facts wrong. A strong, consistent message which exudes transparency and honesty is your best defence.
In this new age of fake news that can be amplified using AI-generated content, a reputational crisis can feel overwhelming. AI text generators do not have to cite verified information when answering questions, and false rumours can quickly appear as “facts” online. However, effective tools and experts do exist to help you manage the situation. The faster you act the better the outcome.
Despite these challenges, the biggest risks to your reputation still stem from small internal disputes mishandled over time. But remember, there is always time to steady the ship and repair the damage.
Ultimately, the real test of a well-managed crisis isn’t whether the public has completely forgotten the accusation, but rather, that the public remembers how well you handled the moment regardless of whether it was “real” or AI-driven. Luckily the right tools and advisors exist to help you through it.
The writer is the Director of Reputation Management and Crisis PR at Adili Group.
