When It Hits the Fan

The King's cancer, Facebook PR and Greta Thunberg

David Yelland and Simon Lewis discuss how the Palace is managing news of the King’s cancer diagnosis. How will the royal communications team be controlling the release of information in the coming weeks? Also, in the wake of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s apology to parents of children who have suffered on social media, David and Simon look at why real change is so hard in Silicon Valley when it comes to child safety, and the PR fallout. Is there a strategic communications plan that can stop tech billionaire Mark Zuckerberg’s reputation from crumbling? Perhaps the PR industry can learn a thing or two from climate activist Greta Thunberg?
 
 
Producer: Eve Streeter
Editor: Sarah Teasdale
Executive Producer: William Miller
Researcher: Sophie Smith
Music by Eclectic Sounds
A Raconteur production for BBC Radio 4

Inside the world of crisis managers and spin doctors as David Yelland and Simon Lewis watch the week's biggest PR disasters unfold. In each episode our hosts go behind the scenes of the latest news stories and find out how, where and when it all began to hit the fan. When It Hits The Fan is hosted by two of the most influential and experienced people in the game; David Yelland is the former editor of the Sun and alongside him is Simon Lewis, former trouble-shooter for the Queen and Gordon Brown, as well as for major corporations like the Nat West, Vodafone and British Gas. Together they bring decades of experience in both creating and managing crises. They'll share all they know about what's keeping those big stories in and out of the news.