Norfolk Southern in Hiding
By Jamieson Gordon
There’s a reason that we always say in our trainings that it’s not a matter of if a crisis will come, but when it will. Norfolk Southern learned that lesson this month and their response suggests that they weren’t ready.
After a train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio that contained toxic chemicals, the rail company was nowhere to be found. At a town hall meeting for residents, Norfolk Southern first said they would attend, but then they cancelled. They issued a statement afterwards that was tone deaf:
“Unfortunately, after consulting with community leaders, we have become increasingly concerned about the growing physical threat to our employees and members of the community around this event stemming from the increasing likelihood of the participation of outside parties.”
We talk about the need to put the human element into crisis communications. They missed the mark; it sounds like a ChatGPT AI robot wrote it. Too many jargon-y, non-human words. Also, instead of expressing any amount of concern for the physical safety of East Palestine residents after the derailment and controlled burn of chemicals from their train, they instead talked about the physical safety of employees at a town hall. This not only implicates the residents as violent, but it does the opposite of what they’ve hoped: this instead foments more anger.
Norfolk Southern took the old, tired, tactic of addressing a problem by bringing up another problem, instead of trying to find a solution. Instead of issuing this statement, they could’ve easily hired a security team for their representative, or approached the local police about concerns of violence. All of this makes their statement seem not only disingenuous, but just really a veiled attempt at avoiding any responsibility for this accident.
They also set up a fact page – NSMakingitRight.com. This page has information on what they’ve done so far, press statements, and constant updates. We give credit where it’s due. This is a good idea, but it came far too late. For days, even a week past the crisis, this page was nowhere to be found. Timeliness matters when responding in a crisis – both for the community involved and your organization’s reputation.
When we do training, we emphasize four very basic principles of crisis communications. First, it’s crucial to listen. This isn’t even crisis communications best practice, it’s common sense. Why would anyone want to listen to you if you won’t listen to their concerns? The second is to act quickly. People in a crisis need to be first or fast. If someone else is out there talking, the public opinion starts to cement. It’s not like the media stopped covering the story – it was one sided and that was Norfolk Southern’s fault. Third, be transparent. Hiding the ball or lying in any way will only further the damage done to your organization’s reputation in a crisis. The last point is maybe the most important: do the right thing. This will look different in every situation, but is crucial if you hope to rebound from a crisis.
It's safe to say that, so far, Norfolk Southern has ignored most if not all of these basic principles. They’ve avoided listening, took weeks to act, and have been opaque. Time will tell if they correct their response – but what they do for the residents of East Palestine and communicating with the public.
What does this mean for you? Take a lesson from Norfolk Southern’s response in East Palestine. When (not if!) the crisis comes to your organization, make sure you remember these four principles and put them into action! It’ll save you and your organization weeks of bad press and put you on the right path. And a shout out to Governor Mike DeWine, Congressman Bill Johnson, and East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway – they’re doing the hard work of ensuring that the citizens of East Palestine are taken care of and get the answers they deserve.