Type the words “Ohio University” into any Internet search engine, and popular results such as “Bobcat” or “Athens” now also include news stories related to an alleged rape.
When headlines about last weekend’s alleged Court Street rape circulated online, the university responded with a campuswide statement, but crisis management professionals have criticized the university for releasing what some say was too slow of a response that lacked a clear focus.
“It’s definitely a crisis. It’s definitely something that needed to be dealt with and responded to right away,” said Melissa Agnes, a crisis management specialist for the digital age based in Montreal. “They’re going to have to work on the online reputation of the university. It has the potential to impact their reputation for the long term.”
OU President Roderick McDavis’ campuswide email referred to the alleged rape as “an unfortunate incident.” Jim Lukaszewski, who has handled crises for large organizations, universities and corporations for more than 40 years, said the statement lacked tact.
“Since when is a rape, even just an alleged rape, ‘an unfortunate incident?’” Lukaszewski said. “(McDavis) took four days to make any kind of a substantive statement. … The question is, what took you so long to be so wrong?”
Lukaszewski said he is currently counseling four university presidents on crisis scenarios, but McDavis is not among them.
“As more information was reported over days following the initial report of an alleged sexual assault, it became clear to the president that there was a greater need to reiterate that our community does not condone the behavior depicted,” said Jennifer Kirksey, McDavis’ chief of staff, in an email.
Both Agnes and Lukaszewski said they think the university should have acted more swiftly in issuing the statement and promoted it more once it did.
The statement isn’t optimized to take priority in online searches for “Ohio University” and poses a problem as people look to OU for leadership during the crisis, Agnes said.
Lukaszewski said it is typical for large organizations to broaden the blame in the midst of crises, and not focusing on the victim can lead to lawsuits.
Renea Morris, executive director of OU’s University Communications and Marketing, said the university will continue to transmit the university’s values and the fact that OU is “a welcoming and nurturing place.”
Francie Coe, a parent of a prospective OU student from Wadsworth, Ohio, was touring the campus Thursday and said the alleged rape didn’t make her reconsider the university — but only because she doesn’t have a daughter.
“It made me grateful that I have a son and not a daughter coming here,” Coe said. “If I had a daughter, it would definitely make me think more into it.”
dd195710@ohiou.edu
@WillDrabold
Read Jim Lukaszewski’s, a crisis management specialist, full analysis of OU President Roderick McDavis’ statement here.
