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OMG! He Said What? (A&E's Duck Dynasty Situation)

Barbara Schuldt, Jeff Totten
January 1, 2015
SKU:
BUS-004212
Region: 
North America
Topic: 
Ethics & Social Justice, Strategy & General Management
Length: 
4 pages
Keywords: 
Duck Dynasty, controversy, A&E network, Public Relations, social media
Copyrighted by: 
Journal of Critical Incidents
Student Price: 
$4.00 (€3.75)
Average rating: 
0

This incident deals with the controversial interview in GQ magazine with Phil Robertson, founder of West Monroe, Louisiana-based Duck Commander and family patriarch on A&E’s “Duck Dynasty” reality television show. Robertson, a devout and conservative Christian, made some highly inflammatory comments about homosexuals and African-American in the pre-Civil Rights era. The A&E network suspended Robertson amid lots of PR, social media, and print commentaries and then reinstated him. The student is asked to assess how A&E handled the PR controversy and to provide suggestions for how the network should have handled the situation.

Learning Outcomes: 
  1. Assess a public relations controversial situation for implications to the firm’s reputation.
  2. Prepare several strategies for minimizing damage to a firm’s reputation and relationship with all publics involved.
  3. Conduct a stakeholder analysis of the A&E/Robertson situation.
  4. Discuss the best practices that should be followed by a firm when dealing with an outspoken celebrity.