Molly McPhersonCrisis and Reputation Strategist | Creator of Mollyfi | Host of The PR Breakdown

The Salad Could Have Been at a Rehearsal Dinner

28 Jul 2026 · 1 min

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In this segment of her crisis management presentation, Molly McPherson stresses the essential principle of "speaking to the pain" when communicating during a crisis. She explains that while apologies need not be overly graphic, communicators must directly acknowledge the real-world impact on stakeholders. Using a vivid example of a contaminated salad that could appear at various events—parties, vacations, or a rehearsal dinner—she illustrates how such incidents can cause significant problems for affected individuals. The core takeaway is that crisis messaging should be empathetic, concrete, and focused on the tangible consequences experienced by those harmed.

Chapters

I always talk about this in crisis management, always, always, always. And it came up on two of my calls this morning. You always have to speak to the pain. Now, it doesn't mean that you have to say, "We're sorry that people had explosive diarrhea on our watch." We don't need to say that. But you need to address this because also think about it. And I go down to this level. I always think about the people, think about the stakeholders. Someone eating the salad, like this salad could have been at a party, this salad could have been on vacation. This salad could have been at a rehearsal dinner for a bride and a groom. This salad could have caused a lot of problems for people.