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SVP of Communications Scott Berchtold should be accountable


HailMary

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The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

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He is TERRIBLE at his job. Like, Mike McLintock from Veep terrible. It amazes me that he still has his job after all these years of sucking at it.

 

That's a hilariously accurate reference.

 

There has been plenty to critique over the last few weeks. His inability to get his public messengers on the same page is at the top of the list.

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Thought he did a good job. Gave nothing to the media. The way it should be

 

 

holy cow, Mead! This is not how he came off. BB "gives nothing". Parcels "gave nothing" (except disdain and abuse to his questioners).

 

Whaley came off as either clueless or (at best) deceptive.

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The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

 

I disagree that it's just the Buffalo media, but I agree that much of the media sucks. Sharks looking for blood and attacking at the first scent.

 

In another post I linked to a Pro Football Talk article trying to kill the Cowboys for late Xmas deliveries. Football news, right?

 

Did you see where a reporter suggested to the OWNER that he should fire himself in SF?

 

 

holy cow, Mead! This is not how he came off. BB "gives nothing". Parcels "gave nothing" (except disdain and abuse to his questioners).

 

Whaley came off as either clueless or (at best) deceptive.

 

I though he was incapable of delivering the message that Pegula ended up delivering afterwards...and that's whether you believe the message they wanted to deliver or not.

Edited by LI_Bills
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The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

I don't think they had to trap him. He made his own bed.

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Let me start by saying Doug Whaley behind a podium on a good day with good news is terrible. Whaley has needed media training from Day 1. The recent media disasters and confusing messaging with Lynn and Whaley start with the mishandling by the Bills communication team and SVP Scott Berchtold should be held accountable. And savvy experienced media relations pro would have identified the risks with both pressers and planned a strategy with prepared statements delivering succinct transparent messaging with clarity on Tyrod and Rex situations especially given Whaley's media experience. Whaley had the perfect opportunity to come clean on both situations and take charge. Well thought out scripted statements with honesty and clarity would have improved the Bills position and credibility. Instead they put Lynn in the line of fire and Whaley delivered a presser that was a national disaster raising red flags with any potential coach not to mention upcoming free agents. The presser was so bad the Bills had to go into "damage control" with an exclusive article by John Harrow, all likely set up by Bertchold. Why didn't they set the record straight before the Whaley and Lynn pressers. While the damage is done more questions should be asked about the role of the Bills communication team and SVP Scott Berchtold in this mess.

Hilly Clinton just lost an election to Homer Simpson b/c everything she says is scripted, with no honesty.

 

But if your main point is to fire Scott Berchtold too, I'm on board.

 

Let the inferno be complete in its scope and let the flames do the cleansing.

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Berctold shoould have been let go 20 years ago. He's an arrogant hack who belongs in a juior high school only so that kids would laugh at him. He's not good with people skills and isn't that the foundation of his job? He's a joke. Is he responsible for this organization being a fool? Yes in many instances. FIRE HIM.

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One person of mild manner that has to deal with him implied to me that he's getting a little b*tchy in his old age now too. :lol:

 

I have heard A LOT of negative in recent years about a guy who shouldn't even be noticed.


 

That's a hilariously accurate reference.

 

There has been plenty to critique over the last few weeks. His inability to get his public messengers on the same page is at the top of the list.

 

 

I see a potential job opening for TBC.

 

Going to have to give up The Lakeshore Athletic Club lifestyle for a condo in Hamburg but you'll be able to agitate Jerry Sullivan and Tim Graham for a living so probably a toss-up to you. :thumbsup:

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It's crazy that a billion dollar organization can have its figureheads so unprepared to face the media.

 

It seems like they aren't even prepped on what question to anticipate and how to answer. Another OBD lifer leading the way.

What does money have to do with it? Money doesn't make you smart

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The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

 

 

Actually, as professionals the Buffalo media were doing their job trying to "fill in the story" and asked fair objective questions. Vic Carucci claimed he has never received so many calls from national media following the presser so clearly this situation was way beyond local media.

 

http://www.wgrz.com/sports/nfl/bills/adam-benigni-and-vic-carucci-discuss-the-doug-whaley-news-conference-the-bills-coaching-search-and-tyrod-taylor-/381709838

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What does money have to do with it? Money doesn't make you smart

The point is that this is a very valuable business that should have a level of sophistication and representation consistent with that value. The pc demonstrated that at least one of these two things is true: Whaley was woefully unprepared; and/or Whaley is inept. Neither of those things are acceptable for an operation of this magnitude.

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Actually, as professionals the Buffalo media were doing their job trying to "fill in the story" and asked fair objective questions. Vic Carucci claimed he has never received so many calls from national media following the presser so clearly this situation was way beyond local media.

 

http://www.wgrz.com/sports/nfl/bills/adam-benigni-and-vic-carucci-discuss-the-doug-whaley-news-conference-the-bills-coaching-search-and-tyrod-taylor-/381709838

And that explains why the national take is exactly the same as the Buffalo News take.

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Berchtold clearly should have had Whaley better prepared for his presser.

 

Whaley violated some basic fundamentals: Know your talking points; hit your talking points clearly and decisively; don't let questions hijack your agenda.

 

Large companies have PR professionals to make sure the messaging is always positive. Whaley's fumbling at a preplanned event did not help the franchise's reputation. What went wrong?

 

I think the OP is probably right in saying Berchtold should be held accountable.

Edited by hondo in seattle
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The quality of the Buffalo media is irrelevant. This is an entertainment industry and the fact is the Media is a huge part of that. The national media is always going to lean on the takeaways/opinions of the local media, because rightly or wrongly there is an expectation that they are closer to the story, and therefore have a better handle on it. So with that being said, the Bills have a responsibility of controlling the narrative of the local media. It's Berchtold and the Buffalo Bills job to know what the narrative and talking points are going to be in these press conferences and control them. None of the questions should have been a surprise. Whaley should not have had to think about his answers. Good organizations, business, etc. make unscripted press conferences or meetings seem scripted.

 

The Buffalo Media may be hacks or whatever you feel they are, but they are not falsifying anything the Bills have said, and the simple fact is the narrative on a national level is the Bills lack competency, organizational structure, and a cohesive plan. This offseason has led to reputation damage that will hurt the Bills from a football perspective, and ultimately from a business perspective. If you don't believe this, you are in denial. They have a lot of work to do to fix this, and from what I've seen the people in the building aren't capable of doing so. They need the NFL equivalent of a turnaround consultant.

Edited by Zac
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The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

The thing to remember is that the Buffalo media is filled with hacks. A few are really good, but most are hacks. They are interested in grinding their ax, not reporting or finding out relevant information. That press conference was crazy - all these idiot "reporters" trying to trap whaley into sounding stupid rather than finding actual valuable information. To me it sounded like the reporters already had their narrative, and were just trying to find quotes to fill out their story. Unprofessional.

Do you work for the Bills? You posted the exact same comment on another post...hmmmmmm.

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