Bill O’Reilly (Memory Challenge)

2015/03/192015/05/25 Wrede, KW Cognition, Cognitive Biases, Crisis Management, Critical Thinking, Uncategorized Bill O'Reilly, Cognition, Critical Thinking, Memory

One of the hardest comments for anyone to say when speaking of Bill O’Reilly is “I have no opinion about the guy.” He makes it almost impossible to separate the messenger from the message.

Human bias is not part of an intellectual process, it is an emotional one. Almost everyone has a bias regarding O’Reilly. If the bias is positive, people agree with him automatically because he resonates with them emotionally and reinforces the group opinion (several documented biases come into effect that strengthens group membership). If the bias is negative, another group of people disagree, also automatically, with biases that enforce their group feeling.

Full disclosure on my part… My own biases of O’Reilly stem from my perception of his abrasiveness and my lifelong cynicism of self-appointed experts and authorities.

I have to put those aside. Ignore the news hype and make a fair analysis so I can fairly judge O’Reilly and ask the question…

Was Bill O’Reilly really lying?

I recently discussed Bill O’Reilly’s media crisis (here). He responded to his critics and the crisis terribly. I also discussed Brian Williams’ crisis and the mitigating circumstances that I believe contributed to a faulty memory recollection that blew up into a media frenzy (here).

Does O’Reilly deserve the same benefit of doubt that I feel Williams deserves? Do the same mitigating circumstances apply?? Continue reading →

Bill O’Reilly (Managing a Crisis)

2015/03/052015/05/25 Wrede, KW Crisis Management, Leadership Bill O'Reilly, Crisis management, Ken Wrede, Kenneth Wrede, media response, Memory, social media

20150305 Bill O’Reilly (Managing a Crisis)

On the heels of the Brian Williams media crisis, another celebrity was caught up in a crisis similar to, and directly related to Williams. Bill O’Reilly, the Fox News commentator, was accused of the exact same misconduct in an article from Mother Jones magazine.

Quick review: Williams was suspended by NBC News when it became publicly known that Williams had exaggerated a claim from 2003 that he had almost been killed in Iraq. He claimed that he was riding in a helicopter when it took ground fire and was forced to make an emergency landing. The actual facts showed that he was in a group of 4 helicopters at the time and it was a helicopter in front of his that was hit. He was unaware of the danger until after the fact and on the ground.

There is nothing worse for anyone than to be caught in the cross hairs of the media. It can be a person, a company, or even a brand. What can you do if you make an honest mistake or if you are the victim of a negative campaign? How can you survive the experience?

The intent here is not to comment on Bill O’Reilly’ integrity or professionalism. Let’s analyze how his crisis unfolded and ask how you would handle the situation? How did O’Reilly do? Continue reading →

Brian Williams (Memory and How Time Effects It)

2015/02/122015/05/25 Wrede, KW Cognition, Critical Thinking, Leadership Development Brian Williams, Cognition, Critical Thinking, Memory

Last week I discussed Brian Williams and the events leading up to his professional predicament and his crisis response to the subsequent public outcry.

The public outcry was one of two responses. First, silence from the people who knew him, but could not defend his error. There was no response that would not sound hypocritical and like an excuse to what seemed to be a blatant lie. Second, the response from other view of the discussion was far more direct and accused directly him of lying.

The error was additionally magnified by Williams’ position of trust as a highly regarded and trusted news voice in the US. According to a 2014 survey, ABC News and NBC News (Williams’ employer) were both tied as the most well known and most trusted television news sources by both US liberals and conservatives. [1] His error is considered especially egregious because he “betrayed” his integrity as a journalist.

The major talking points in the media were that he lied to aggrandize himself and he lied which betrayed the integrity and professionalism of the news media. Neither option is good, but like everything else in the world I don’t think the conclusions are that simple. The events leading up to the crisis are so well known that it presents a great opportunity to examine memory and it how it (as I understand it) works.