I know many of you are on vacation or headed out during the next few weeks, so I’ll keep these blasts brief(er) until September. PR never takes a day off, but if you do, I’ll do my best to keep you updated.

Like this week’s football news, which was full of PR misses and misunderstandings.

• The public learned San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was injured in a car accident more than a week after it happened.

• University of North Carolina football general manager Michael Lombardi was placed on administrative leave while the school’s HR office investigates complaints inside and outside the athletic department.

What does this have to do with you? The PR takeaways can serve as a heads-up for all of us.

The cost of silence

Chatter around Shanahan, who’s fortunately recovering from his injuries, is about the weeklong delay in learning about it and its causes. It felt as if the 49ers couldn’t wait any longer to say something because training camp was about to start.

You might say it’s none of your business, but Shanahan, like all NFL coaches, is a public-facing professional.

Delaying news like Shanahan’s created speculation. I would advice anyone in the same situation to share verified information as soon as you can. It builds trust and helps control the narrative. **Props to Shanahan for correcting the public record.

Leadership or Liability?

Reports surrounding UNC football GM Lombardi have shifted attention away from Bill Belichick’s effort to turn around the Tar Heels program after last year’s 4-8 debut season. A master of keeping a lid on in-house struggles while he built his legend in New England, Belichick can’t afford more distractions in Chapel Hill.

Even if your right-hand person is a friend, you need to cut ties to stop what can grow to be a reputational hemorrhage. Keeping him on the roster distracts from everything you pledge to improve.

Whether it’s a delayed response or a difficult personnel decision, your reputation is shaped by the tough calls you make. Don’t let someone else make them for you.

PR SIDEeffect – The next time you read a headline, ask yourself: What happened before this became news? That’s usually where the PR part of the story starts.

©2026 Gail Sideman; gpublicity.com; SIDEbar

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