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Speed is generally treated as the top priority in a crisis. But responding too quickly without clear facts can make a bad situation worse.
Instead, a brief acknowledgment that information is still being gathered can prevent confusion, reduce speculation and protect credibility, speakers said during Ragan’s 2025 PR Daily Conference.
“Sometimes people are afraid to say ‘we don’t know yet,’ and that’s actually okay to admit,” said Lisa Campos, public relations manager at Amazon. “But you also don’t want to put the wrong information out there.”
This kind of thinking might feel counter to the pressure many teams feel when reporters are calling, social media mentions are climbing or leadership wants answers quickly, she said.
“A lot of times we’re expected to know the answers immediately, and that is almost never the case,” Campos said.
Acknowledgment first
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