Housing crisis toughest PR job of 2016, consultancy says

NZ Herald·

28 Dec, 2016 05:34 AM3 mins to read

Housing affordability was found to be the toughest PR gig of 2016, according to BlacklandPR. Photo / NZME

Dealing with publicity around housing affordability was the toughest public relations job of 2016, according consultancy firm BlacklandPR.

The company today issued a list of the most challenging PR jobs of the year, which also included the Chiefs' "stripper-gate" scandal, the Kaikoura earthquake, the Panama Papers leak and John Key's resignation.

But no issue was seen as so difficult to deal with from a PR perspective as the country's housing crisis.

"Housing affordability had everything required to make it the most discussed issue of the year - almost every New Zealander is affected by it. Fixing it has been put on the Government, but factors in the issue would challenge the world's best PR exponents," said BlacklandPR director Nick Gowland.

"When emotions run high and people are worried, the communication challenge is much more complex. Facts and difficult ideas require astute messages."

He suggested the Government should take ownership of the aspects of the crisis that it could resolve.

"It could try redefining the problem into something simpler, even if a symbolic gesture, to get people talking about the same part of an issue. Only then can you convince people that you are fixing it."

The Government and its agencies dominated the list. Only five organisations in the top 20 were businesses or non-government organisations.

"Government is always about very complex issues. It has to juggle competing vested interests with the national interest," Gowland said.

"What's new this year is how personal some of the challenges were for John Key, his resignation and his response to the public rejecting his referendum to change the flag."

One of the few non-government-related issues on the list was the Chiefs' stripper scandal, in which players were alleged to have inappropriately touched dancers at a team party.

"The Chiefs' controversy was catapulted onto the front pages and into everyday conversation because it combined two highly emotional subjects: the conduct of professional rugby players and sex. That had all the ingredients for a highly-charged, emotional story, but one that was comparatively easier to resolve," Gowland said.

"As far as the New Zealand Rugby Union's role is concerned, we don't believe the issue has properly played out yet. They have risked making it one with the announcement of their review into player behaviour."

BlacklandPR uses a scoring system that ranks issues out of 10 for four factors: impact, profile, emotion and complexity.

In previous years the list has been headed by issues such as "Roastbusters", the Fonterra botulism scare, a carrot and lettuce recall, and the Flag Referendum.