Ray Lam made sure to turn his cellphone off before he sat down for a big family dinner last April. The 22-year-old New Democratic Party candidate was taking a much-needed Sunday night off from campaigning in the British Columbia provincial election.
But that break was cut short when his campaign manager arrived at his door with news that scandalous Facebook photos of the aspiring politician had surfaced, and Mr.
Lam's Liberal opponent in Vancouver-False Creek was using them against him. In one photo, two people were grabbing at Mr. Lam's underwear.
In another, Mr. Lam was clutching a woman's breast.
He was 17 when the pictures were taken.
“Originally, people thought it would just blow over in a day or two,” he said from his home in Vancouver. “The reaction was very unexpected.”
After his story spread widely – and negatively – in the news media and online, Mr. Lam reluctantly withdrew from the race. Not because he was embarrassed, he said, but because the matter had distracted the public from real election issues.
It's been almost five months, but the stories about the incident and the photos still dominate Mr. Lam's Google search results. It's been a long, rocky road to repair his online reputation.
Social media have given scandals the legs to travel farther and last longer.
But the targets of negative gossip are using the same social media to help restore their reputations.
Singer Chris Brown, who was convicted of assaulting fellow pop star Rihanna, used YouTube to broadcast an apology to Rihanna and his fans. Others try to scrub the Internet of negative content, or they just lie low, in hopes that things will blow over.
Last week, Ontario's former attorney-general Michael Bryant, who has been charged in connection with the death of bike courier Darcy Allan Sheppard, hired a PR firm to give his online image a makeover. The firm cleaned up his Facebook profile, adding a professional head shot, and launched a blog and Twitter account to counter to negative rumours about him.
Mr. Lam, meanwhile, was given strict advice from NDP brass to stay out of the spotlight after the photos began showing up on news websites and blogs. He deactivated his Facebook account until the election was over, but later launched a personal website to counter rumours.
Vancouver-based PR manager Eric Hogan, who advises clients such as Red Cross and Bell Canada on how to maintain positive online reputations, said the photo incident was bungled because Mr. Lam never actually said he was sorry. “People are attracted to humility,” Hogan said. “If you come out and say, ‘I did something wrong and I apologize,' they appreciate that.”
But crisis-management guru Eric Dezenhall, who has helped politicians and celebrities bounce back from scandals, says the widely promoted apology strategy isn't foolproof. “I think you really have to ask yourself whether any tactic you take will do anything more than draw attention to the problem,”
he said from his office in Washington. When caught in a scandal, he added, it can sometimes be worthwhile to wait it out and then move on.
Chris Brown, for example, has stopped apologizing for the assault and recently opened a Twitter account, where he has tweeted about his new single and recent purchases. Andy Beal, an online reputation management consultant, said this approach can be safer than trying to counter rumours online. If you've been trashed by your ex-lover online after a breakup or divorce, it can be tempting to share your side of the story in a Facebook post, he said. But never doubt that your ex or your ex's friends might flame you in response.
“You're going to be in the middle of a battle of he-said, she-said,” Beal explained.
And that pettiness could come back to haunt you 10 years down the road when the evidence is still archived online.
