Sex, lies and videotape: Illinois shares lessons learned from a public relations debacle.

Imagine your worst public relations nightmare as a correctional administrator. One of the largest television stations in your state acquires a videotape in which one of the most notorious mass murderers in your prison system engages in sexual acts, enjoys what appear to be drugs, and brags about how much fun he has in prison. The station airs segments of the tape over an entire week, spurring public outrage and prompting public officials to establish a legislative committee to investigate the management of your department. More than 18 months after the airing of the tape, the first question you encounter from many members of the public is why the department allows inmates to run its institutions.

Unfortunately for the Illinois Department of Corrections (DOC), this nightmare was real. The airing of the Richard Speck tape in May 1996 was a public relations disaster from which this department is still recovering. Repairing the damage to the department's public image that resulted from this episode has been an ongoing effort. In the course of responding to the aftermath of the Speck tape, we have learned a great deal about how to approach controversial media issues. I would offer our experience - both the mistakes we made and the lessons we learned - as instruction to other correctional agencies that some day may face their own public perception crises.

The Tape

Richard Speck was the convicted murderer of eight student nurses in Chicago in the 1960s. He served most of his life sentence in prison at the Stateville Correctional Center until his death from emphysema in 1991. In the late 1980s, rumors began to circulate that Speck was writing a book that would scandalize the department. In early 1996, the department received indications that a videotape of Speck "partying" in prison existed, and that a television station in Chicago had purchased the tape to air at some point in the future.

While we were concerned about the release of the tape, our initial view was that interest in the tape probably would be strong, but short-lived. Given Speck's death and the fact that the tape itself was at least 10 years old, we felt that it had little relevance to the current administration, and consequently would have no long-term effect on how the department was perceived. As a result, we made no special efforts to prepare for the release of the videotape.

Aired during "sweeps" week, WBBM-Chicago intensively promoted interest in the release of the tape as a major news event to hike ratings for its local newscast. Speck's notoriety and the lurid nature of the tape made the story seemingly irresistible for local, state and national media outlets. Politicians soon weighed in, conducting hearings on the tape that featured WBBM's newscaster as an expert on conditions within the department's prisons. Citing the activities displayed on the tape, the Illinois Attorney General and the House of Representatives each launched their own investigations of the Illinois DOC. The Speck tape rapidly became viewed as irrefutable evidence of the department's failure to manage the state's prison system.

Widespread Repercussions 

There are two general lessons to be learned from our experience with the Speck tape - one dealing with how and why we misread this issue in its inception, and the other dealing with the actions we took to address the damage done to the department's reputation.

In retrospect, we badly underestimated the public's reaction to the Speck tape, and as a result were inadequately prepared to respond to the furor that developed subsequent to its release. Although we knew the tape would be made public, we did not initially investigate the circumstances under which it was made or how it was smuggled out of prison. In fact, no department staff member had even viewed the tape until it was aired publicly.

Our thinking at the time was not to overreact. We felt that publicly denouncing the conduct shown on the tape and simply pointing out how dated it was would sufficiently distance the current administration from any controversy. This, of course, proved to be a serious error in judgment. We failed to foresee the degree to which both the media and public officials would make the Speck tape one of the overriding criminal justice issues in the state.

In looking at the tape solely from our perspective as correctional administrators, we did not fully appreciate the motivation that WBBM would have to promote a pseudo-news event such as the release of the Speck tape. Because the tape was a "visual" news story, it was especially well-suited for exploitation by a television station hungry for an edge in a highly competitive media market. WBBM successfully increased the ratings for its local newscast during the "sweeps" period, with significant implications for the station's advertising revenues.

To put the incident in a political context, the vivid image of a notorious criminal "enjoying" himself in prison proved to be of irresistible interest to politicians already critical of the department's management of the inmate population. The Speck tape provided a golden opportunity for lawmakers to express their disgust for lawbreakers and their indignation at the department's apparent failure to punish one of the most notorious inmates in its custody. In the midst of an election year, the Speck tape became yet another political issue in a highly competitive political contest.

In failing to recognize the motivations behind those who would use the Speck tape, we also missed how it would become linked with other ongoing, unrelated issues to reinforce the impression that the Illinois DOC was corrupt and out of control. Allegations of sexual misconduct among staff at the department's primary female facility, and stories of gang influence in the department stemming from the federal drug conspiracy trial of inmate Larry Hoover, the reputed head of the Black Gangster Disciples, created an atmosphere in which the public was prepared to believe the worst about the administration of the DOC. Despite the unsubstantiated nature of these allegations, they were seen as essential corroboration of the DOC's management deficiencies as evidenced by the Speck tape.

Repairing the Damage

The media/political feeding frenzy that ensued from the release of the Speck tape required an immediate response from the department explaining why the Speck tape was an anomaly and emphasizing that it was not representative of inmate life in the DOC. More important, we had to correct the assumptions that were being made about our operations. We had allowed the media and the politicians to defame us in a way that may have suited their purposes, but that was grossly inaccurate and unfair to the department. Our immediate task was to undo this damage and to redefine the department's image.

The initial theme we developed in addressing criticism of the department was to denounce the behavior shown on the tape, while pointing out the circumstances under which it was made and distributed. We felt it was particularly important to point out the age of the tape and to note that the tape was made for a specific purpose - to make money off the notoriety of Richard Speck. By purchasing and hyping the tape, we argued that WBBM had essentially engaged in tabloid journalism.

In responding to the central issue of how such behavior could go on in prison, we made the argument that failures in security at any prison are indeed a serious matter. However, problems at Stateville particularly should not come as a shock, given the very volatile and dangerous nature of the inmate population at that institution and the chronic lack of staff, as well as the extremely poor design and physical condition of the facility. Our central theme was that we manage the best we can under extremely difficult conditions at institutions like Stateville, and the Speck tape illustrated the need for modern maximum security facilities.

Upon developing our message, we set out to counter the firestorm of criticism we were receiving. Our strategy had three components:

1. We sought to get our story on the Speck issue into the public discourse through a series of meetings with editorial boards around the state and interviews with reporters. Even though we encountered attacks, skepticism and a number of hard questions, direct engagement with the media proved invaluable in getting our point of view before the public. Confronting responsible media organizations with the facts also served to somewhat dampen their enthusiasm for the Speck story.

2. We developed a team of department executive staff charged with the responsibility of responding rapidly and thoroughly to emerging allegations and criticism of the department. This team managed the many issues arising out of the multiple investigations of the department, while ensuring that all of our responses were consistent with themes developed in response to the Speck tape. This approach was designed to ensure that all issues related to the tape were managed in a coordinated manner by staff in constant communication with the leadership of the department.

3. We developed a program of initiatives to proactively respond to the concerns of our critics in the Legislature and the media. Given the very public positions established by many lawmakers condemning the department, simply defending our record was not sufficient to blunt the criticism and establish a more positive perception of the department. We felt it was imperative to draw attention to those policies and programs under development which addressed security issues in our institutions. These initiatives included:

* The conversion of the Pontiac Correctional Center from a maximum security institution to a permanently locked-down segregation facility;

* The establishment of a gang-free institution at Taylorville to provide an environment completely free of gang intimidation or influence;

* Enhanced efforts to interdict the smuggling of contraband into the prison system, including the establishment of K-9 units at all maximum security prisons, installation of high-tech drug detection equipment and the commencement of mass shakedowns of individual institutions by prison tactical units in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies;

* Random drug testing of all department staff and contractors; and

* The establishment of a panel of nationally recognized experts in the field of corrections to assess the management of critical issues and to offer recommendations for improved performance. The panel was chaired by former ACA Executive Director Anthony Travisano and included former ACA President Bobbie Huskey, former BOP Director Norm Carlson, former New York Commissioner of Corrections Tom Coughlin and former Michigan Director of Corrections Bob Brown.

Conclusion

Despite the often intense and personal nature of the criticism we received, we found it absolutely imperative to positively engage our critics, briefing them on our initiatives, soliciting their input and ensuring they understood our arguments. While this was difficult given the heated emotions surrounding the issue, it proved essential to the acceptance of the department's position, as well as to our security improvement program, which was universally acknowledged to be far-reaching and effective.

The impact of the negative publicity took a tremendous toll on staff morale. Although no staff members were fired as a consequence of the debacle, the litany of negative public comment directed toward the department inevitably affected how department employees felt about their jobs.

We decided to thoroughly brief staff on a regular basis, updating them on our responses to specific criticisms and new programs. This strengthened their confidence in the department and enabled them to publicly defend their professionalism and the administration of the prison system.

As a postscript to this episode, none of the investigations launched in the wake of the Speck tape have produced any findings of wrongdoing or mismanagement on the part of department staff. Despite the often-intense efforts to identify a scapegoat for this scandal, the Illinois DOC has stood firm in its position that the Speck tape was an aberration and was in no way representative of prison life today. In the end, the brouhaha resulting from the Speck tape may have more relevance for students of media news management and the quality of political discourse in this country than it does for correctional administrators.

Even under the best of circumstances, accurately conveying the reality of the complex issues faced in corrections is a difficult task. Attempting to define the public perception of an agency in the face of the condemnation following an event like the release of the Richard Speck tape is even more daunting. However, we have found that a long-term strategy which focuses on affirmatively engaging your opponents, managing issues in a responsive, coordinated manner, and developing proactive proposals which address your critics' concerns can mitigate the fallout from even the worst public relations disaster.

I would not wish our department's experience with the Speck tape on anyone. However, you run a terrible risk by not thinking seriously about how your agency would respond to such an event, and planning accordingly.

Odie Washington is chief administrator of the Illinois Department of Corrections.