Overheard a PR agent talking about a "rebranding" strategy for a client who got caught lying

Was grabbing lunch near a media office last Tuesday and two PR people were chatting at the next table. One said their client's best move was to "lay low for 6 weeks, then drop a charitable donation post without acknowledging anything." The other laughed and said it works every time if you don't "overthink the wording." Made me wonder how many of those random goodwill posts from big names are just reset buttons. Has anyone else noticed a celeb suddenly go quiet for a month then pop up with a humblebrag about donating?

2 comments

2 Comments

owens.cameron7d ago

Friend of mine used to do social media for a mid-tier influencer. She quit because they kept having to schedule these "organic" charity posts whenever the influencer screwed up. She told me about this one time the influencer got caught lying about a product endorsement, so they went radio silent for a month. Came back with a post about donating to a children's hospital. No mention of the lie, no apology, just a photo with a check. The comments were all "you're such a good person" and the whole thing blew over in a week. She said it felt gross because the kid in the photo wasn't even a real patient, just a model they hired. Made me realize those "random" good deeds are often just damage control hiding in plain sight.

william_henderson7d ago

Wow, that is just WILD. I actually saw that happen with a rapper who got caught faking a charity event a few years back. He went totally dark on social media for like a month and a half, no posts no stories nothing. Then boom, he pops up with this big video of him handing out turkeys at a food bank with a sad song playing. No caption, no explanation, just that video. Everyone in the comments was like "wow he's so humble" and completely forgot about the fake charity thing. It's like a magic trick where they hide the bad stuff and show you something shiny instead. Makes you wonder how many "sudden philanthropists" are really just trying to scrub their reputation.