R&R Partners: Moving Minds

There’s a basic rule I always tell my clients with public relations challenges and if Tiger Woods would let me, I’d tell him too. It goes like this: The absence of information creates a vacuum – a void that sucks in everything swirling around it: rumors, pontification, half-truths, and one side of the story. And unless you step into that vacuum and set the record straight, you will never be in control of the story being told about you.

Tiger – the superstar of the world’s superstar athletes – is stuck in the worst public relations disaster of his career. And it’s all his doing. His story smells funny. The media knows it and his fans know it. The police would like to know it. And the people who pay him hundreds of millions of dollars to endorse their products would like to know it, too.

By now you know the details of his accident — apparently backing out of his driveway fast enough to knock him unconscious after the crash. Injuries bad enough to keep him locked up at home and forcing him to cancel his upcoming appearance at a golf tournament he hosts. Most likely because he doesn’t want to answer the questions swirling around him. The same questions he doesn’t want to hear from police – who have tried at least three times to interview him.

Tiger did release a statement saying that this was a private matter, but given his enormous public stature, he and his team of advisors should know the media won’t stop questioning – especially with rumors of an extramarital affair fueling speculation about this incident.

And while even the most public of our public figures deserve some privacy, history shows us that there’s only one way to make that happen as fast as possible. Just tell the truth.

It worked for David Letterman. The talk show host took control of his PR nightmare a few months ago by breaking his own news first – admitting on the air that he had sexual relationships with some of his co-workers. He did so because that information was about to be revealed during a legal matter. So Letterman bit the bullet, took control of the story and quickly set the record straight, Yes, he took heat for a couple of weeks, But then it all went away quickly.

No one accused him of covering up the truth or hiding – those are behaviors that really start to damage your credibility and reputation.

Tiger, are you listening?

The truth is Tiger will survive this incident, much like Michael Jordan got through his gambling scandals and leaving basketball to play minor league baseball. Like Jordan, Woods is a once-in-a-century athlete who’s worshipped by millions. He will be forgiven.

But to be forgiven, you have to confess. Just step into the vacuum Tiger, please. This will all end much faster that way.